The Extraordinary Story of the Arctic Thirty

There is a saying in Russian jails. 'Ne ver ne boysya ne prosi': don't trust, don't fear, don't beg. Don't trust because life here will always disappoint you. Don't fear because whatever you're scared of, you are powerless to prevent it. And don't beg because nobody ever begged their way out of a Russian prison cell. The plan was to attach a Greenpeace pod to Gazprom's platform and launch a peaceful protest against oil being pumped from the icy waters of the Arctic. However, heavily armed commandos flooded the deck of the Arctic Sunrise and the Arctic 30 began their ordeal at the hands of Putin's regime. Veteran Greenpeace activist and former Guardian Student Journalist of the Year Ben Stewart had exclusive access to the activists, as well as dozens of hours of interviews with Russian sources, Greenpeace campaigners and high-profile supporters. He now tells the dramatic and inspiring story of the incarceration and the ensuing emotional campaign to bring the protesters home. In association with Bristol 2015.

Speaker biography:

Ben Stewart, a longtime environmental campaigner, was a leading figure in the campaign to free the Arctic 30. In 2010 he led the first Greenpeace mission to confront Arctic oil drillers off the coast of Greenland.

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