Ecosocialists in England and Wales Get Organised

Reading: Guardian and Independent websites, The Big Issue, The Socialist, The Morning Star, some pages of Finnegan's Wake and the beginning of Ken McLeod's The Sky Road .
Listening: Editors-The Back Room, Radio Five morning programme (Well done Caroline Lucas MEP, called upon to comment for the Greens on Cameron and Blair's latest environmental pronouncements and doing very well - that is the way to treat Campbell and Co's usually aggressive interviewing!), local radio (at work).
Viewing: News bulletins, Coronation Street.

Ecosocialists in the Green Party in England and Wales are making serious efforts to get organised and have come together to publish a statement of intent. The new group, provisionally titled "Green Revolution" is planning a much larger gathering in June to look at a more comprehensive statement and begin to plan activities and establish links. This is very encouraging, there have been previous green socialist groupings within the English and Welsh Party that have played a key role in fighting off liberal and right wing currents' attempts to "modify" the party in their own image. Hopefully the new grouping can support the vital work of the newly re-established Green Party Trade Union Group to build links and solidarity with the broader workers movement. It would also be hoped that the group could reach out to non-aligned and sympathetic socialists outside the party and build unity in action with the broader left. The initial statement also contains the worthy aim of boosting the organised Green Party presence on important demonstrations and protests.

The Statement :

Green Revolution

Green Revolution has been launched as a network for socialists and other radicals in the Green Party of England and Wales. It will act as an outreach body that will communicate the Party's radical policies to socialists and other anti-capitalists outside of the Party.

GR is based on the assumption that capitalism is a system that wrecks the planet and promotes war. A green society must be based on social justice. GR in short works to promote ecosocialism as a solution to our
planetary ills.

GR supports the democratic structures in the party and encourages transparency, accountability and engagement in all organs of the party. We also see the Green Party as a 'bottom up' political organisation where the principles of the membership are paramount and not a 'top down' one where a self-designated political elite decide on policies and principles.

GR aims to raise the international links of the Green party building globe links with radical greens and ecosocialists across the planet. It will work closely with members of other European Green Parties to reform the workings of the European Green party structures that must be democratised. Green politics must realise the slogan 'think globally, act locally' by linking practical local campaigns to global issues of ecology, democracy, justice and liberation.

GR aims to act as a ginger group within the Green Party so as to raise Green Party politics to meet its radical policies. Green politics needs to be based on dynamic campaigning and hard intellectual ground work to create workable alternatives.

GR aims to build regional campaigns and contribute to coalition building through coherent alignments and open discussion with progressive anti-capitalists. It is vitally important that the Green Party works to develop the climate change campaign and the continuing movement to stop the war. GR will work to enhance Green Party contributions to demonstrations, marches and other solidarity events.

While GR is keen to build fraternal links with faith communities it will not compromise on of human rights including issues of gay and lesbian rights and womens liberation.

Since William Morris's activism in the Social Democratic Federation in the 1880s, there has been an ecosocialist tradition in Britain, Green Revolution believes that ecosocialism provides an alternative to a society based on alienation, ecological destruction and war. Such an alternative demands that we 'educate, organise and agitate'

Green Revolution..Sarah Farrow, Joseph Healy, Penny Kemp, Tim Summers and Derek Wall. Headcorn 2006.