We are holding an event at Adelaide Place in Glasgow, close to Charing Cross Station on 19th September to for those campaigning locally and nationally on hyperscale data centres to strategise, plan, learn and share information.
The day will include workshops on engaging with the planning system, on media and communications, working with politicians, and planning for the ongoing campaign.
There will be time to hear from all the local data centre campaigns and from some inspiring speakers (TBC).
Tea and Coffee will be available, however lunch will not be provided, as we have an extremely limited budget! Please bring your own sandwich lunch, or pop out to one of the many local eateries or shops.
Draft Programme
Here is a draft of the programme – the timings are yet to be confirmed but this gives you a general idea. We will to sign people up for preferred workshops when you arrive and you can sign up for a slot in the Surgery with our volunteer planning experts.
| 09:30 – 10:00 | Welcome refreshments | |
| 10:00 – 10:05 | Introduction: Welcome and the background to why we are gathering – the community campaigns present, APRS’s campaign and the aims of the day. | Kat Jones, APRS |
| 10:05 – 10:20 | Icebreaker networking We will have a networking icebreaker at the start where we will divide by geographical area within the room and meet others who live near to us. | |
| 10:20 – 11:00 | Local Campaigning We will hear from 4 local campaigns, who will give us a whistle stop tour of some of the approaches they have used in their campaigns so far. (5 minutes each)Followed by a short panel discussion for questions | Hearing from:West Edinburgh/Hermiston, Larbert, Auchtertool, Hurlford All TBC |
| 11:00 – 11:15 | EIAs, ERCS and data centres Ben Christman is the principal solicitor and legal director at the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland (ERCS). ERCS provides free legal advice and representation on environmental matters – they are assisting communities to challenge local authority decisions on environmental impact assessments. He will outline the role of ERCS in supporting communities, the EIA process and how to challenge decisions. | Ben Christman, ERCS |
| 11:15 – 11:30 | Why a Moratorium and how?APRS, along with local communities campaigning on hyperscale data centre applications near them, are calling for an urgent Moratorium on hyperscale data centres until the impacts have been properly assessed and we have a framework of guidance and governance in place. Kim will share the experiences of working on a Moratorium campaign (against incinerators) and share some tips and learning from that campaign | Kim Pratt, Friends of the Earth Scotland (via video recording – as she can’t make it in person) and Kat Jones, APRS |
| 11:30 Workshop Session 1 | ||
| Breakout Room 1 | Media spokesperson training This training is designed for representatives of campaign groups who will be speaking to local or national media. | Led by Global Justice Now’s Anita Bhadani. Extremely limited places contact info@aprs.scot |
| Auditorium | ||
| Planning and Hyperscale Data Centres This workshop will be for those who will be engaging in the nitty gritty of objecting to planning applications and want some key tips and advice on the process and how to interact with the planning system. | Nikki Sinclair, APRS | |
| Tech Justice campaigning and data centres The roll out of data centres across Scotland is a resource grab (of energy, water, land) by the big tech corporations. The technology they are developing is transforming our societies in new and dangerous ways, shaping everything from war and food production to the news we read. Their huge wealth gives them access to governments, which they are using to influence laws and policy to suit their own interests. This workshop will look at the unchecked economic and political power of Big Tech – and what we can do about it. | Jane Herbstritt, Global Justice Now | |
| 12:45 – 13:30 LUNCH – Please bring your own lunch | ||
| 13:30 Workshop Session 2 | ||
| Breakout room 1 | Media spokesperson training This training is designed for representatives of campaign groups who will be speaking to local or national media. | Led by Global Justice Now’s Anita Bhadani. Extremely limited places contact info@aprs.scot |
| Auditorium | ||
| Communications for local campaigns This workshop will look at strategies for getting the word out for local data centre campaigns. | Kat Jones, APRS | |
| Working with MSPs and politicians This workshop will explore the best ways to communicate with MSPs, especially for those without much experience of the Parliament and how it works. Will include a basic intro to the Parliament: committees, chamber etc. | Matthew Sellar- Hope for the Future | |
| Breakout room 2 | Available throughout the event: Planning Surgeries Take your planning queries related to hyperscale data centres to our two experts in planning. | Paul Ede of Place at the Table, and Mike Marshall, Board member of Planning Democracy. |
| 14:45 | Gathering together, final thoughts and what’s next! | |
| 15:00 | Close | |
| We hope people will take the opportunity to join fellow campaigners and head off for a coffee/drink in one of the many cafes or bars around the area. | ||
APRS is Scotland’s Countryside Charity. We campaign to protect, enhance and promote Scotland’s countryside and rural landscapes for everyone’s benefit, and we support others to do the same.
We are funded by donations so we are asking for a contribution , if you can, to help pay for the venue costs – please choose from one of the ticket options that best suits you. If you want to make a larger or more regular donation you can support APRS at the following link: