The documentary "Bidder 70" will be shown, followed by a panel discussion on the legal implications of climate change activism, the role of civil disobedience in the climate change movement, and the impact of climate change activism on public understandings of lawfullness and justice.
"Bidder 70" tells the inspiring story of US climate change activist, Tim DeChristopher. In 2008, DeChristopher presented himself as an authentic bidder for oil and gas leases at a controversial Bureau of Land Management auction in Salt Lake City, Utah. This was a last minute decision on his part, driven by his desire to protect the areas of public land at stake. He successfully placed bids of almost $1.8 million over 22,000 hectares of pristine wilderness. Although the auction proceedings were subsequently invalidated when the Obama adminstration came into power. DeChristopher was nevertheless convicted of two offences and sentenced to two years in a federal prison in 2011.
"The reality is not that I lack respect for the law; it's just that I have greater respect for justice" - Tim DeChristopher.
Panel Chairs: Professor Brendan Mackey (Director, Griffith Climate Change Response Program) & Professor Bee Chen Goh (Co-Director, Centre for Peace and Social Justice, School of Law and Justice, Southern Cross University)
Panel Members: Professor Charles Sampford (Director, The Institute for Ethics, Governance and Law, Griffith University), Jo-Ann Bragg (Principal Solicitor, Environmental Defenders Office Queensland), Dr Nicole Rogers (School of Law and Justice, Southern Cross University)