Wednesday, April 16, 2008

2nd international meeting for squats and autonomous spaces

Interspace Berlin: 2nd International meeting for squats and autonomous spaces, 24-26 May 2008


Kesselberg, Berlin 24th - 26th May 2008: The time and the place for
the meeting in May are now fixed. The Second International Squatters
and Autonomous Spaces meeting will be from the 24th to the 26th of May
2008 on the Kesselberg near Berlin.


International meeting for autonomous spaces - why?

Last November several activists called for a meeting in Dijon,
France. The main intention of this meeting was the preparation of the
decentralized days of action on the 11th and 12th of April 2008. During
the meeting people were very interested in a more continous
communication on an international level and expressed the need and
desire for more discussion time.

Thus was born the idea to have further meetings, to achieve durable
exchange and solidarity on an international level. Some people offered
to organize the next meeting in Berlin and squatters from Barcelona
already announced to organize a following one.


The time

The meeting will last three days: from Saturday May 24th till
Monday 26th. We invite everybody to arrive on Friday during the day or
in the evening.

For those who can stay a bit longer, the Berlin free spaces action
days are taking place from the 30th May to the 2nd June
( http://wba.blogsport.de).


Agenda

We of course have some ideas and have included the suggestions
already made in Dijon, but the agenda is open and in the end determined
by the people who come. If you have ideas, wishes or if you want to do
a workshop, send us an email to intersquatberlin@riseup.net

Proposed topics so far:

* How do we deal with repression?
* What new strategies are there to create and invent squats and autonomous spaces?
* How does paying rent or buying houses influence the reality of autonomous spaces?
* What are free spaces and why are they important?
* How do autonomous spaces generate, maintain and involve themselves in broader social struggles?

And of course there will be need to speak about the April Action Days,
to evaluate the actions and the networking process and to possibly
further develop the infrastructure created in Dijon.


The place

The meeting is taking place at Kesselberg, an autonomous/project
space in the countryside just outside Berlin. There is space at
Kesselberg for about 100 people to sleep (but please bring tents if you
have one), as well as several rooms for plenaries and workshops. The
place is surrounded by woods and there is a lot of space for taking
breaks or meeting outside if the weather is good.

Leave your dogs at home if possible. If you do bring them please
keep them close to you at any time, as there are wild animals in the
woods surrounding Kesselberg and already a bunch of dogs living there.

The site is also chemical free. The people at Kesselberg have said
they can provide soap, but if you bring your own, make sure it is
completely chemical free.


How to get there from Berlin:

Public transport: The nearest train station is Erkner. Just take
the S3 train, direction Erkner. This is a local Berlin train line and
tickets cost about 3 euros.

From Erkner station we can either pick you up if you let us know
when you’re arriving, or you can take the bus. The bus is Line 428,
direction Ziegenhals, until the stop ‘Neu Zittau, Kesselberg’. The
entrance to the Kesselberg land is next to the bus stop. Alternatively,
it takes about 20 mins to cycle there from Erkner.

With a car: Kesselberg is about 7km south of Erkner, between Neu
Zittau and Wernsdorf. Driving from the Berliner Ring, either take the
Erkner exit via Neu Zittau, or the exit Niederlehme via Wernsdorf,
direction New Zittau. For a map see www.kesselberg.info/weg.html

There is limited parking space at Kesselberg, so it would be helpful to
let us know if you are coming by car or wanting to park a live-in
vehicle on site for the duration of the meeting.

So that we can prepare enough space, organise enough food etc., we
need to get an idea of how many people to expect, so please let us know
you are coming. Likewise if you need a place to stay in Berlin just
before or after the meeting, please email us at: intersquatberlin@riseup.net


Keep an eye on the blog for up to date info: http://interspace.blogsport.de/



See you in May!

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