Viersen, 21 June 2019

Today around 4,000 climate activists will start from the Ende Gelände protest camp in Viersen to block the coal fields in Rhineland. They will depart from the camp in two waves. More activists are expected to arrive at the camp throughout the day, and to start a third wave of blockades tomorrow. The alliance Ende Gelände demands the immediate coal exit and a fundamental system change.

“We still have hopes, the door is still open to a future within the 1.5°C limit. But we will miss this last chance if we don’t act immediately. Today we set out with thousands of people towards a future without fossil fuels, without exploitation and without this destructive quest for infinite economic growth.” states Sina Reisch, spokeswoman of Ende Gelände.

Over the weekend, manifold actions with thousands of participants will take place in Rhineland. Parallel to the protests of Ende Gelände, Fridays for Future are organising school strikes, and environmental NGOs large protests.

“Nothing less than our future is at stake. We will definitely not wait until 2038 to phase out coal, we are acting now“, says Nike Malhaus, spokeswoman of Ende Gelände. “If we keep burning coal for another twenty years, it is impossible to stay within the 1.5°C limit. Today we are taking the coal phase out into our own hands because the government is failing to protect the climate.”

Ende Gelände has repeatedly blocked coal infrastructure in Germany  in the last years. Last autumn, 6,000 activists blocked the coal tracks of a mine near Hambach forest for 24 hours. People from all over Europe are participating in the mass actions of civil disobedience of Ende Gelände.