From August 31 to September 14, 2019 Turning the tide took place on the coasts of Germany, Denmark and Sweden. It was aimed at raising awareness of climate justice and combating climate change. Not just so much, but a cruise on two beautiful Lovis and Hawila ships and public events at all the ports where we were moored.
The voyage began on Friday, August 30, 2019, when we gathered by boat, stored supplies, and met a charming town in northern Germany Lübeck. However, the program itself did not begin until Saturday, when we spent the morning organizing two 30-member groups (one on each boat) and planning an afternoon event in the city. This event took the form of two silent demonstrations for climate justice.
And the evening 'bycicle cinema', a ten-wheel-driven movie on the sail of the ship, which, thanks to volunteers, charged the generator for two hours when we were showing global movies. And here is one of those strong short movie examples called Happiness from Steve Cutts.
On Sunday morning we set out on a day trip to Neustadt. It was our first sail, so we had a lot of information waiting for us. Not only about the various activities on board, but also about safety and other important instructions in the event of an accident. However, the trip was calm, although it was very cold during the journey and it was equally cold for the next time of the cruise (between 15 - 17°C). In Neustad, we agreed on mutual behavior and proper workshops in the crew of our ship, we had dinner together with another ship (we made a chocolate cake) and enjoyed the evening in a quiet town. In the morning we had a meeting of all the participants to take a picture together and agree to share information between ships, photo and other media publications to the public and other organizational necessities. But then we started immediately, because we did not know how it will be with the wind that day and we were going a long voyage.
But it was quite calm, so we started our first workshops. I took part in a card knowledge game about the causes and consequences and the overall complexity of climate change. There was so much I didn't know. For example, weddings of new buildings are responsible for nearly 50% of CO2 production. Or that global warming not only causes the greenhouse effect, but also a lot of other gases that we release into the atmosphere, even though we think they are beneficial (because they cool the atmosphere). That evening we were anchoring in a bay near the German coast. Even though it was cold, we still took the opportunity to jump into the sea. The water refreshed us and washed us. We spent the evening talking about civil disobedience. How its definition has changed over the years, what it means for us today, and above all we have given historical and contemporary examples.
Tuesday's weather was scary. It was raining, there was a lot of wind and it was cold. But we still set out on the road in the morning when we suffered from big waves and seasickness all morning. I think about two-thirds of the participants were sick of the stomach, and the rest took care of their own comfort as much as possible. We also found that as we sail on an old wooden sailboat, water flows into it occasionally. For example, lockers with things or around the walls to the beds. Nothing that could not be managed, or with the support of several lavars and bowls to solve, just we had to get used to the constant smell of musty and humidity in the air. After noon, however, the weather improved rapidly, so we were all eating late lunch around four o'clock and the rest of the afternoon was pleasantly floating. But this time we decided not to stop for the night to save time and to have a better experience and we went through the whole night till morning. When we docked around five o'clock on the small island of Samsø in the dock Ballen.
Here we first all had a warm shower to warm up. And then we went on a tour of the Samsø Energieakademie. Samsø is probably the only island so far that produces its own energy through several wind turbines strategically located throughout the island, and which, instead of drawing it from the public system, supplies it to other parts of Denmark. It was very interesting and engaging, because this independence from the state, its energy economy and politics meant great liberation for the island. See more at the Climate Action website. In the afternoon we had other workshops. About creating sponges for washing dishes from old socks, about coal mining, about wind power plants. In the evening we gradually took turns in the local sauna, which was a good thing.
On Thursday we set off again. This time but not far, because we went to visit the starting sustainable community near the town of Ebeltoft. A community of one hundred and sixty people bought a closed, only five-year-old factory and surrounding land to make them an energy-independent community with passive houses. They were inspired by the well-known book Reinventing Organizations by Frederic Laloux. No one has lived here yet, because not all permits have been officially settled yet, but even in the factory hall there is a lively rush of small entrepreneurs or private workers working on their projects there. After the tour, we used the hall to plan events in Århus and paint banners. That evening, there was a lot of blowing, so we decided to have dinner together on the Lovis. But just to transfer food a few tens of meters seemed like a superhuman task. It was beautiful to see how powerful nature is sometimes.
On Friday we went to Århus, where we arrived in the evening. It was raining again, but we were glad we were there. Some participants were replaced during the weekend. We also organized several events in the city and in the dock. Twice Die-in (sham deaths of accidental pedestrians due to climate change), a silent demonstration using the Mic-check method to raise awareness of evening performance of aerial acrobatics on raised ropes between masts and subsequent storytelling about coal mining. But the biggest highlight of the program was the so-called boat dance, where the captains of both boats created a choreography that was realized in the centre between the hours of 5 am and 6 pm. It was breath-taking and beautiful. At the same time, there was also a festival in the city, so the city was literally crowded with people. But more we found it super cool to spread the message because we knew it would have a much greater impact than if the city were empty.
„Bella Ciao climate change urgency song“
We need to wake up, we need to rise up,
we need to open our eyes and do it now, now, now.
[We need to build a better future
And we need to start right now]
We’re on a planet, that has a problem.
We’ve got to solve it, get involved and do it now, now, now.
Make it greener, make it cleaner,
Make it last, make it fast and it now, now, now.
No point in waiting, or hesitating,
We must get wise, face their lies and do it, now, now, now.
On Sunday we went on another cruise. They waited four days on the water. The first day almost did not blow, so we did not miss much, and we anchored in the first nearby bay just behind Århus. Due to bad weather, night watches were also held to watch the anchor so that no accident happened. Which meant that the two participants from each ship were awake for an hour at night to see if both lights were on, if the anchor was holding and not moving, etc. The next day the wind was no better. We moved only minimally. On the contrary, we were literally spinning at a point where the wind blew suddenly very suddenly but only for a few moments. We then sailed twice around the same spot and saw the same onion skins that we threw there before lunch in the evening. Hihi. But at least we had time for some more workshops. Right out of the morning we stretched and ended the warm-up with a big party on the upper deck. And they also played a game to share mineral resources (we died out of ten after the fifth round).
But in the evening, we were running out of batteries and we had to charge the generator, and because of the time, we decided to go overnight on the engine at least for a while. We also hoped that as we move out of the bay area, there will be a bit more wind, and we will finally start moving east. Which was partially done. But we also got into the field of military training, which took place there all Tuesday. So the crews of the warships scattered all over the radio were kindly told us to get out of their line of fire. It was very nice, though disturbing. So we went on day and night to get to safety. In the meantime, however, it began to blow again, so we unfolded the sails and continued to head with the wind in our backs. It was raining again, but at least we were moving safely forward. In the late afternoon we docked on the Danish side of Helsingør. A shower, rice dumplings for dinner, and then a two-hour discussion of the rights of nature and how they differ or are identical to those of humans. It was exhausting, but beautiful at the same time.
Wednesday morning, after a few days, we were finally welcomed by the sun and I got up so I could walk around a bit. We went early again, because the weather forecast reported wind to the opposite direction, so we had to cross a lot and it was a busy cruise at all. But the sun stayed with us in the cloudy sky all the time, so we enjoyed it. We even managed an afternoon workshop on the planned liquid natural gas station in Götenburg and what local organizations can do about it (and other such cases). But we have already reached Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, where we dock near the Christiania district.
Other events in the city were planned for Thursday. Another Die-in, quiet protests in life jackets, again a boat dance. Splendour. On Friday followed a move to Malmö with other public events, and that was it. Unfortunately, for personal reasons I could not stay until the end, which I was very sorry. But even so, I think we have influenced the minds of several dozen people, including mine, and that our time and effort have not been wasted.
*** Above all, remember the wisdom of previous generations...
Lada Matyášová