Endure or peter out? Here’s what Northern Rivers organisers and Stop Adani can teach us about organising climate groups

Over the last decade, several groups in Australia have successfully mobilised against fossil fuel interests. But which ones have gone the distance?

Citation:

Tattersall,  A., Hall, N. (2024) Why Organizers need Mobilizers and Mobilizers need Organizers. Stanford Social Innovation Review, March 18, https://doi.org/10.48558/7R77-NS62.

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Overview

Over the last decade, several groups in Australia have successfully mobilised against fossil fuel interests. But which ones have gone the distance?

The urgent global threat of climate change might suggest groups running large-scale campaigns are the ones likely achieve lasting change. But my research suggests groups focused on local efforts are often more successful.

I’ve studied coalitions and campaigns, the climate movement and people-power globally. I’ve found groups with strong local roots can evolve and endure better than larger, more dispersed groups.

The trajectory of two major environmental groups in Australia demonstrate the point.

The first is focused around the Northern Rivers in New South Wales. There, the threat of gas extraction in the 2010s prompted the community to start organising through the national anti-gas group Lock the Gate. When floods struck the region in 2017 and 2022, many organisers shifted focus to form a new, successful alliance.

The second is the Stop Adani group. Organising began around 2010 after plans for the giant Adani coal mine in central Queensland were announced. The group successfully reduced the size of the proposed mine, but energy behind the movement dwindled.

Examining the way these groups organised and operated – and how long they lasted – offers lessons for others.