Biketour Open Meeting in Berlin before the Critical Mass!

***JOIN OUR FIRST OPEN MEETING IN BERLIN, before the CRITICAL MASS ON FRI, 31-MAY*** To get started with regularly meetings of the “Berlin base”, we invite you to our first Open Meeting on May 31st, 17:00, at the circular courtyard outside the Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Mariannenplatz, Kreuzberg. We will introduce the project, talk about ways to get involved, and share some picnic food that everyone contributes to, and maybe make a banner for the critical mass. Please bring some food to share and your bikes because we plan to join the Berlin Critical Mass at 8pm from Heinrichplatz. If you cannot…

Continue reading

May 1st: “Political (Holi)day” or “(political) Holiday”?

OK, we were some four to six thousand and they were maybe a hundred, and our noisy and chants of disgust filled the streets much more than their heroic songs could ever do. But: They marched. The Nazi demonstration took place in a suburb of Berlin, protected by german police. The sad thing is that in other places big masses of people crowding in the streets (also referred to as “blockading”) could prevent such events. With the sad impression in mind that we had been many, but yet to few, I went home after their march was over. To get…

Continue reading

Justice, beyond borders

Some thoughts on this years theme from a participant from 2012 After learning about this year’s “boundaries, borders and beyond” theme through the winter meeting minutes, I took some time to reflect on it and write down some thoughts and ideas that might further a discussion on how to fleshen out the theme and make it more concrete. I think if one goes deeper into the theme philosophically, the real problem isn’t as much borders as such, but closed borders, borders that are not fluid. Where people live together there will always be borders one way or another – think…

Continue reading

Borders Boundaries and Beyond!: Biketour 2013 get organised…

The Ecotopia Biketour Collective united from all corners of Europe for the annual ‘Winter Meeting’ – aptly named due to the location this year in snowy Berlin! We set up camp for the weekend at the Kubiz social centre in true Biketour style, where 12 of us began planning and debating the practical and more theoretical elements of organising this years tour… In keeping with our broad and multi-interpretable ‘Borders’ theme, on the saturday we joined the Refugee’s Revolution Demo, together with thousands of protesters calling for: The End to Deportation Abolition of the outdated Residenzpflicht The end to inhumane Refugee Camps…

Continue reading

Melon melon! Sweet memories from the summer…

Here is the result of a few sessions joyfully reminiscing and picking my favourite few hundred photos (out of thousands) which were taken over our two and a half month journey. From my room here in Edinburgh the tales of adventure we had last summer seem a lot further away than I would like them to be, but seeing these has made them fresh again. Outside there is frost on the ground and it’s wonderful to be taken back to siesta times when it was so hot in the middle of the day that cycling was just not an option! Sometimes it’s hard…

Continue reading

Susannes – The Ecotopia Biketour song

Susannes – Bike Tour from Susannes on Vimeo. Sexy legs on tiny tires fight the wind conquire the mountains get your freedom trhough degrowth fun and fight we enjoy them both. Lost in time in the oldest world we won’t cry the end of oil homeless, dirty, skipping food little price for feeling good From transgenics to organic fight together never give up from nuclear to solar panels tale is leaving push the pedals push your pedals! Consomateurs pas naissance on voyage sans essence nous roulons à vélo sans soucis et sans boulot trencant fronteres al nostre pas sense pressa…

Continue reading

Party: Ecotopia Biketour

Summer 2012: two and half month on the road, 120 people joined to peddle more than 3000 kilometer between Barcelona and Venezia and visited more than 40 different projects and campaigns related to Degrowth. Want to find out about what happened on the Biketour this summer? Want to meet with fellow bike-crazy people? Want to be reunited with people that you shared part of the journey of over 3000km? Want to find out about amazing degrowth projects on our trail from Barcelona to Venice? Want to join an evening of full-hearted celebrations? Come to the RAI in Barcelona next Friday…

Continue reading

Can Piella: SOLIDARITY NEEDED!

Can Piella, a project the Ecotopia Biketour visited in july, is facing an eviction threat, we received this call out recently and would love to see you all supporting this great project that show an alternative path towards a more sustainable, autonomous and degrowth way to live in the land. May we be able to drink Can Piella beer for many more years!

Continue reading