“Inspiring Action for Nuclear Abolition”
National Grassroots Youth Conference -- August 16-19 2007
The sixth Think Outside the Bomb conference, sponsored by the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, took place from August 16-19 at the University of California, Santa Barbara. More than 100 students and youth traveled from across the country to take part. If the responses of the vast majority of them are an accurate indication, the conference not only lived up to its theme of “Inspiring Action for Nuclear Abolition,” but served as a life-changing experience for nearly all who participated. In the words of one attendee, “I learned so much and made so many really amazing connections that I can hardly believe it all happened in only four days.”
 Prior to showing the film, Trespassing (www.trespassingdocumentary.com) Director Carlos DeMenezes and film star Steve Lopez of the Fort Mojave Nation speak to a crowd of nearly 200 at UCSB. |
More ambitious than any previous TOTB gathering, the event featured many innovative elements. These included a pre-conference training on August 15th, designed to prepare less experienced participants to understand and fully engage with the content of the full conference; a community event on the last full night of the conference to draw in members of the Santa Barbara community (a screening of the documentary Trespassing, an expose of the nuclear industry’s exploitation of American Indian lands -- which moved many audience members to tears); and the option for participants to take part in a locally-organized street theater performance the morning after the conference. During the performance, conference participants engaged hundreds of downtown Santa Barbara passers-by in conversations related to the issues addressed at the conference.
Another innovative aspect of the conference was the opportunity for participants to collaborate in writing a statement about the event’s purpose and impact, as well as about the Think Outside the Bomb network’s goals and strategy more generally. The process of compiling this statement, tentatively called “A Blueprint for a Nuclear Weapons-Free World,” is ongoing as of this writing (on which further details below).
Each day of the conference featured a different theme. On the first day, August 16th, it was “Nuclear Weapons & Nuclear Disarmament”; on the second and third days, “Localized Connections to Militarism” and “Indigenous People & Nuclear Colonialism,” respectively. On the fourth day, the theme was “Making It Real: How Do We Live Lives of Resistance and Creativity?” highlighted by a particularly popular panel that addressed the day’s theme. The panel featured speakers Jennifer Nordstrom of the Women’s International League for Peace & Freedom, Andrew Lichterman of the Western States Legal Foundation, and conference organizer and Nuclear Age Peace Foundation Youth Empowerment Director Will Parrish, who received a collective standing ovation at the conclusion of the panel.
Leading issue experts conducted information sessions that included topics such as “Nuclear Weapons and International Law,” “Poisoned Power: the Nuclear Power Industry Renaissance,” “Supporting Native Peoples Working to Transcend Nuclear Colonialism,” “Resisting and Transforming Militarism Locally,” and “Mapping Out the Nuclear Fuel Chain.”
 Laura Watchempino (Acoma Pueblo), Leimomi Kamiya (Marshall Islands), Julia Moon Sparrow (Shundahai Network), and Steve Lopez speak on a panel about supporting native people in overcoming exploitation by the nuclear industry. |
Participants hailed from 17 states and represented over 30 schools and communities. Speakers ranged from 17-year-old Leimomi Kamiya, a native of the Marshall Islands (the location of 67 US nuclear bomb tests from 1946-58 and “anti-ballistic” missile tests today), to 79-year-old Myrna Pagan, a founder of the Committee for the Rescue and Development of Vieques in Puerto Rico, a small island where the US Navy tested depleted uranium and various chemical weaponry for several decades. Pagan was a leader of the grassroots campaign that evicted the Navy base from her home island.
“It's important for you to realize that the work you're doing is not just to change the system, but to make life better for your community,” said Pagan, who received multiple standing ovations. “Your education should be more than a ticket for a better paying job; it should be your entrance to a higher level of consciousness, conscience and service.”
 Many of the participants gather for a communal meal at a park in Isla Vista, the college town adjacent to UCSB. |
The conference embodied a highly proactive approach to addressing the challenges of ridding the planet of nuclear weapons, transforming the military-industrial complex, and fashioning grassroots community solutions to the interconnected ills threatening both current and future generations of life on earth. Solution-oriented sessions regarding non-violent direct action, non-violent communication, and facilitation and group dynamics allowed participants to hone numerous valuable skills. During one particularly popular session, two of the conference facilitators led participants in “time traveling” to the year 2030, at which point nuclear weapons have just been abolished. Participants broke into small groups to brainstorm newspaper headlines to convey that fortunate news (read these headlines).
Overall, the event weaved a rich tapestry of information and inspiration. The participants learned a great deal of in-depth information on the topics covered, as well as well as several specific skills to help them be more effective. But the most important lesson that the vast majority learned was what it is like to be part of a large community of passionate, motivated, and engaged peers. They also experienced what it is like to be empowered to make a significant difference in the world – a lesson they will take with them in everything they do. As one participant wrote on his evaluation form, “I am deeply grateful to the NAPF. I am grateful for the beautiful memories and for being real brothers and sisters.”
One of the most important characteristics of the conference was that it served as a space where relatively experienced young activists were renewed and regenerated to continue – and, indeed, strengthen – their commitment. As one such participant wrote on their evaluation of the event, "I was having my doubts as to whether I should continue on this path, but now I feel totally invigorated and ready to continue on for the long-term."
In a sense, the conference was only the beginning of what is to come. Many important projects and collaborations have already sprung from it.
Documentation
As important as the conference was to its participants, it is equally important to document the knowledge and energy from the conference for those who were not present. With this in mind, there are three primary means by which the conference was documented:
Think Outside the Bomb Website: www.thinkoutsidethebomb.org now features a new section devoted to recapping the August 2007 event. The section features photos and participant notes detailing the content of a majority of the conference sessions.
- “A Blueprint for a Nuclear Weapons-Free World”: A committee of conference participants is working to compile the extensive feedback provided by participants both during and following the conference to complete the blueprint.
- Conference Documentary: A pair of Santa Barbara-based documentary filmmakers were on hand to video-record the majority of the event. They are now working to compose a roughly 15-minute documentary on the event. The documentary will be posted on the Think Outside the Bomb web site as well as on such popular video file-sharing networks as Google Video and YouTube.
Also, the conference was the subject of write-ups in the Santa Barbara Daily Sound, the Kyoto Journal, and the Santa Barbara Independent, as well as a 1,500-word feature on the Z Magazine web site.
Conference Outcomes
Following are miscellaneous specific working group projects that emerged from the conference and will continue to shape the work of TOTB network members leading into next year’s conference.
- Anti-Nuclear Activist Support Network – several participants decided to initiate this project to volunteer to help with research, writing, and other forms of personal support for nuclear disarmament activists nationwide who are engaged in time- and labor-intensive projects. Ultimately, it will include a web site and e-mail listserv.
In smaller discussion groups, students have the opportunity to directly connect with established peace leaders. Above, Energy Justice Network coordinator Mike Ewall discusses the attempted revival of the nucelar power industry in CA. - Energy Justice Network – several conference participants have begun collaborating with this Philadelphia-based organization on its efforts to prevent the construction of new nuclear power plants. This collaboration includes a workshop on Think Outside the Bomb at a national climate change conference called “Youth Power Shift” in Washington, DC in November.
- “No New Nukes California” Campaign – several conference attendees from California have gotten involved with this campaign to prevent the construction of new nuclear power plants in California, which has been proposed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
- University of Utah Class on the Nuclear Bomb – a new class, based on the “UC and the Bomb” classes at the University of California organized by members of the Think Outside the Bomb network, will kick off in the spring semester at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City. The connections that made this class possible were made between students and young organizers who attended the TOTB conference.
- National Bite the Bullet Network: This national network, the majority of whom are TOTB network participants, are working in collaboration to transcend the military-industrial complex and redirect spending to human and environmental needs, starting at universities.
Commitment Cards
At the end of the conference, participants filled out "committment cards," which began with the statement, "To Think Outside the Bomb and help others Think Outside the Bomb, I commit to..."
"...organize my campus against weapons manufacturers, as well as my community, as many exist there."
"...love more. This includes being a better and stronger person, doing more for mother earth, and raising awareness with the people around me."
"...articulate and embody a new approach to organizing in which responding to threats to our communities and planet are balanced by community-building activities."
"...working with youth in educating them on nuclear issues within the Idaho K-12 education system as well as the university/college level."
"...striving to be optimistic, faithful, creative, and loving in my activism and actions toward a nuclear-free future."
"...help organize a conference like this one, except even bigger and better, in 2008!"
 Some TOTB conference participants pose following one of the concurrent workshops. |