Awareness Concept

Awareness at the City for All Camp

1 — What is awareness?

The term “awareness” derives from “to be aware” and means (in a broader sense) “to be aware, to be informed, to be sensitized to certain issues.” We live in a society characterized by unequal power relations. People are given advantages (privilege) and disadvantaged (discrimination) based on certain characteristics — whether intentionally or unconsciously.

Awareness, as a concept, opposes all forms of discrimination, violence, and boundary violations. Hurtful and transgressive behavior, such as sexist, racist, antisemitic, homophobic, ableist, classist, or similar attacks, will not be tolerated at the City for All Camp.

2 — Why do we need awareness?

The City for All Camp should be a place where as many people as possible can feel comfortable. Accordingly, a mindful, respectful, and supportive interaction with one another is important to us. The camp also offers participants a space to learn from one another, network, and further expand our resistance movement. Everyone present should be given barrier-free access to content-based training/education and strategic discussions. However, no one is free of prejudice and discrimination in their interactions with others. Therefore, each individual must consciously reflect on this (critical self-reflection). As an awareness team, we cannot do this work for you. However, we offer to support you to the extent possible.

We are aware that as an awareness team, we are predominantly white and we do criticize this. We also need to be self-critical about the fact that we cannot provide dedicated BIPoC awareness structures. To improve our awareness work as a climate camp, we would like to invite BIPoC awareness collectives to contact us 🙂

3 — How does awareness work?

Ensuring that we treat each other with care, respect, and solidarity is our responsibility. We want to point out to each other when we fall short. However, situations can arise where this is not enough, or where people need support. Boundary violations, assaults, or discriminatory behavior cannot be ruled out at the camp, as an open space. In these cases, the Awareness team is there for you as a confidential, partial, and affected-oriented support structure and does not see itself as a mediator. The power to define the violence and/or boundary violations experienced lies entirely with the affected person. You can contact the awareness team at any time if something is too much or stressful for you.

We are available from 9 am to 10 pm. People who take on awareness shifts can be recognized by their purple vests. In addition, members of the Camp Awareness Team are on site as backup. Feel free to speak to the people in the purple vests at any time or call the awareness number (0043/677/61498862). The cell phone line will be available 24/7 during the camp. We try to be present and available at camp – at the assembly sessions, in the workshops, etc.

You can recognize us by our purple vests.

In case of an emergency, you can reach out to us at the following phone number: (0043/677/61498862)

Brief explanation of terms:

Confidential: This means that nothing you say will be shared with others unless you wish for it to be. Everything you say remains between the team and you. Even the information that you have sought support from the awareness team will not be shared.

Partiality: This means that your perceptions and needs are taken seriously, and the awareness team is 100% on your side.

Affected-oriented: This means that the focus is solely on you and your needs in the situation. What do you need right now? How can the awareness team best help you? This can range from “just listening” to providing support in difficult or hurtful situations.

Instead of primarily focusing on the consequences for the violent/abusive person, the awareness team focuses on the needs of those who contacted the team to ensure their continued participation in the camp. However, this can ultimately also result in the exclusion of the violent/abusive person, as we want to ensure that those affected are not pushed aside.

Limitations of the Awareness Team

At this point, we would like to point out that the awareness team does not always have personal experience, or knowledge regarding discrimination. This can be both good and bad. On the one hand, this is good if it relieves people who are themselves affected by the respective discrimination situations of having to provide support. On the other hand, it is less good if those affected do not feel comfortable or sufficiently understood due to the lack of knowledge of the contact person. We recognize the need if those affected prefer to speak with people who share their experiences. As a person affected, you can raise this directly with the relevant person on the awareness team; we will try to find another contact person if possible.

Members of the Awareness Team also have their (emotional, psychological) limitations. They are not psychotherapists, doctors, or the like, but a team of volunteers. If they cannot support you, they will refer you to experts. The Awareness Team is not responsible for reprimanding problematic speech, for political negotiation processes, facilitation, or psychotherapeutic interventions. The awareness team should not be understood as a monitoring agency, security service, or expert body.

Awareness as a shared responsibility:

We all come to this camp with our individual prior experiences, concerns, and knowledge of discrimination. None of this is always visible from the outside. It is important that we are aware of our own social positions and treat other participants with respect. We come from different movements, spaces, and with different approaches and focuses. We want to create a space where people feel confident asking questions and expressing their opinions. But it should also be possible to change one’s mind or criticize one another.

At the City for All Camp, we want to openly, collaboratively, and constructively address criticism of sexist, racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, transphobic, queerphobic, ableist, or similar statements and behaviors — especially in our immediate environment. Awareness as a shared responsibility is the responsibility of all camp participants.

4 — What can you do to raise awareness?

As the awareness team, we offer concrete support to people affected by discrimination. What we CANNOT (or do not always want to) provide, however, is conflict management, dispute resolution, or therapeutic work. We can only create a safe space together, and each of us is responsible for ensuring this succeeds. So be mindful in your interactions with other camp participants and, ideally, inform yourself about possible forms of discrimination in advance.

To ensure a pleasant atmosphere at the camp and to ensure that as many people as possible can benefit from the workshops, we encourage you to observe and question your own speaking style in group discussions. Depending on how we speak, other participants may feel uncomfortable or certain perspectives may be excluded from the discussion. So-called “dominant speech behaviors” include:

Long, self-indulgent monologues,
interrupting others,
interjecting comments,
discriminatory language, and
dominant communication patterns that don’t directly verbally attack others, but nevertheless secure their own (privileged) position in a discussion. This can, for example, be the (partially unconscious) occupation of space by cis*-men who lecture others (especially FLINTA, women, lesbians, intersex, and trans people, but also other marginalized people), ignore their criticism, and deem their contributions less important.

Finally, please address everyone at the camp in German first — unless they are actively speaking another language — even if you suspect that person may not speak German. You can’t tell what language a person can speak from their appearance. Restrain yourself if you’re curious about the origins or identity behind a person’s appearance. People can decide for themselves what and when they want to reveal personal information about themselves and don’t need to be presumed.

Anti-racism at the City for All Camp:

(this paragraph is primarily aimed at white people)

In the predominantly white climate justice movement in Austria, we want to invite and encourage camp participants to engage with the backgrounds of cultural appropriation (e.g., white locks), othering, tokenism, white supremacy, and white fragility. The camp is a space in which we want to encourage each other to relinquish white authority without passing on the responsibility for anti-racist practice to those affected. We would also like to provide a few useful links here to help you get familiar with the topic and get an initial overview (unfotunately in German):

Noa Ha:

https://web.archive.org/web/20240518135127/https:/missy-magazine.de/blog/2016/11/03/kulturelle-aneignung-und-koloniale-gewalt/

Mädchenmannschaft:

https://web.archive.org/web/20240518135123/https:/maedchenmannschaft.net/schwarze-widerstandssymbole-auf-weissen-koepfen/

Book recommendation:

Robin DiAngelo: White Fragility; Why it’s so hard for white people to talk about racism

In search of spaces for dialogue: Notes on the war in Israel and Palestine

At the City for All camp, there is no room for racism, anti-Semitism, or any other form of discrimination, especially in the context of the war in Gaza. Unfortunately, such attacks are becoming increasingly common in left-wing spaces.

The camp is not the place where complex political issues can be definitively discussed. But it is the place where we can take steps toward understanding together. We don’t have to agree on everything. Our goal is to create a space that counteracts polarization within the ‘transnational left’ and respects concerns. We want to cultivate openness to different viewpoints.

However, some points are not up for discussion for us: We condemn the conduct of the war and the dehumanizing rhetoric of the right-wing government in Israel, which has led to over 50,000 deaths in Gaza and further deepens the current plight of the civilian population. Therefore, legitimizing or relativizing this has no place at the camp. At the same time, we believe that solidarity with Hamas, the relativization of the October 7th massacre, and any antisemitic statements have no place in left-wing spaces, including our camp. As an organizing team, we stand on the side of the people and the civilian population and oppose dehumanization. With regard to Palestine and Israel, we join the demands for an end to the war and the release of all hostages.

We are activists, comrades, and friends who have had different experiences. We are shaped by the contexts of the countries in which we grew up and in which we live, by their history and involvement. It is therefore understandable that we hold different positions on some issues. Beyond our influences and backgrounds, we should demonstrate a willingness to listen to one another and respect one another. For us, this means engaging with issues and respecting communicated boundaries.

5 – See you at camp!

We hope you have fun learning and experiencing things at the City for All Camp and look forward to seeing you there. You can get further important information at the Info-Point or the awareness tent. You can also leave us feedback, questions, and comments about our awareness-raising work anonymously in the mailbox at the info tent, or send them by email to care@klimacamp.at – even at a later date before the camp. We will then evaluate and reflect on them after the camp.

Your Awareness Crew 2025