Australian Student Environment Network

The Australian Student Environment Network (ASEN) is the national network of many campus environment collectives in Australia, formed at the 1997 Students and Sustainability convergence in Townsville. People from ASEN facilitate communication between environment collectives and co-ordinate national projects and campaigns. ASEN is particularly known for cultivating intersectional social justice analyses and critiques amongst young environmentalists, facilitating direct action campaigns, projects towards just transitions and indigenous solidarity work. ASEN is the longest running, and one of the largest, youth environment networks in Australia.

Students of Sustainability is an annual conference usually held on a university campus during the winter break (July). Since ASEN was created by the 1997 Townsville Students of Sustainability conference, the national network has helped to organise the conference each year. In 2015, SsS will be held at Flinders University in Adelaide.

Annually in January ASEN holds a training camp for people who want to learn about environmental campaigns, indigenous solidarity, campaign strategy, self-education, advocacy and develop knowledge and skills for continuing the network.

ASEN aims to work with Australia's indigenous peoples in their struggles for sovereignty and self-determination. This includes supporting communities fighting the nuclear mining and energy industry on their lands. ASEN contributes annually to the Aboriginal Tent Embassy convergence in Canberra on Survival/Invasion Day.

ASEN is the main contributor to university campus fossil fuels divestment campaigns. In 2012 ANU's environment collective began a divestment campaign which led the broader ASEN network to begin a national campaign known as "Lock The Campus" which later formed the "Fossil Free Universities" campaign with 350.org and other national groups. This campaign is current and ongoing, constituting one of ASEN's biggest commitments.

In 2013/14 several state networks set up working groups to discuss and self-educate around just transitions. From 2014 onwards ASEN members in Victoria have become more active in EarthWorker co-operative and other just transitions projects.

The ASEN food co-op working group connects people interested in food co-operatives, worm farms and community gardens to enable information sharing and joint projects.

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