World Naked Bike Ride

Environmental campaigners rely on a number of different strategies to get their message to a wider audience. They organise bold and expensive campaigns, the likes of Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd are familiar with, sending ships down to Antarctica, chasing the Japanese whaling fleets, and are often putting themselves and others at great risk.

At the other end of the spectrum, protests can be as effective, and cost almost nothing, provided they are packaged well. One such protest that appeals to the voyeur in all of us is ‘naked bike riding for the environment’. This is a non-violent form of protest that is developing somewhat of a cult following worldwide. Through the power of the internet, groups are springing up all over the world. No less than 50 events took place globally in 2006 and the brainchild behind the whole concept, is a South African by the name of Conrad Schmidt who resides in Canada. With practically no money, a very simple web-site and the seed of an idea, a group always turns up at the proposed event. No less than 800 at the last ride through the streets of London. No arrests were made, the 5000 odd spectators were thoroughly entertained, if not by the intended message.

A film was made about the event, that got to the final stages of the Wildscreen festival in the campaign category. We caught up with the organiser of the event Jesse Schust, who has been arrested many times in the past for environmental demonstrations. He is well versed in non-violent demonstrations and saw riding bicycles naked through the streets of London as the ideal demonstration against the fossil fuel burning excesses, especially in the automotive industry, where automobile manufacturers in the States are even giving up to 3000$ in fuel vouchers in an attempt to lure people to buy gas guzzlers. We also chatted to the filmmaker Johnny Zapatos and the difficulties he had to face getting the story together. With zero budget for the production, it was a labour-of-love which made it to the screens of one of the biggest Natural History Film Festivals in the world. Click here to visit the world naked bike ride site.

Aims of media campaign