Environmental Films

I am sure you are one of the thousands of people who have watched the Al Gore film, An Inconvenient Truth (http://www.climatecrisis.net/an-inconvenient-truth.php). If not check out the trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAK8Cd4t0WA



It is movies like “An Inconvenient Truth” that get people excited and probably scared. Scared to a point of not being able to see how they can take action that will make a difference.

So I was really excited when friends started saying to me that I must watch the movie Home. Check it out at http://www.youtube.com/user/homeproject as it has some superb scenery.



Though when I was half way through the movie I got this concern that the movie was going to leave me once again in a place of being paralysed to take action. Thank goodness it did finish with some positive news and ways people are making a difference. However, after the 1h30m I was left thinking what are really positive movies I could be sharing with people to give them the courage and inspiration to know that we all can make a real positive difference to our climate.

Well a good friend of mine said check out the 22 minute film called “Hope in a changing climate” (http://hopeinachangingclimate.org/). Well I did and I was very impressed. It is about ecological restoration projects of huge scale happening across China and Africa that are producing superb results for their communities in terms of food and water security.

If you are looking for a boost on what you can do then I do encourage you to watch this short movie at http://hopeinachangingclimate.org/.


The programme documents the remarkably successful efforts of local people to restore denuded, degraded ecosystems – transforming them into verdant, life-sustaining environments which enable people to break free from entrenched poverty. The film contains breathtaking before and after footage of large-scale restoration projects. Presented by John D. Liu, founder of the Environmental Education Media Project (EEMP) and creator of the film Lessons of the Loess Plateau, the new programme is directed by Jeremy Bristow from the BBC, the award-winning producer of the acclaimed David Attenborough series The Truth about Climate Change.

The area of restoration on the Loess Plateau in China is the size of Belgium and thousands of years of subsistence farming had made it barren and unfertile. In 1995 The Chinese Government, with support from The World Bank, took drastic action to rehabilitate the plateau, and local people – seen as both perpetuators and victims of the devastation – became part of the solution.

Looking forward to hearing about similar films that give us solutions not just problems.

Grow well
Dr Merrin

Climate Change and Blogging

I love communicating with people especially when it involves great ways to help us all understand better the sustainability of the human population on planet earth.

I am regularly involved with community awareness raising projects whether they be online using social media or personal events where people really get their “hands dirty” by being connected. Whether that is planting trees, making compost or picking vegetables at places like Ark Eden (www.arkedenonlantau.com) on Lantau Island or a beach clean up with say DB Green in Discovery Bay (www.dbgreen.org). Hong Kong has amazing choices.

To me taking action is far more important than talking about it. However communicating the message so that more people become aware of the issues is really an important step so hence I am involved with groups such as Green Drinks (www.greendrinks.org), Earth Champions (www.earthchampions.org) and Clean Air Network Hong Kong (www.hongkongcan.org) which give people the ideas and support to take the action they are most comfortable with. A superb format for getting to know what issues you are passionate about is the Pachamama Alliances – Awakening the Dreamer Symposium. Check out where a symposium is near you at www.awakeningthedreamer.org

Now that you are sitting in front of your computer reading this, how about responding to this blog with your thoughts or start your own blog and help more people understand what climate change means to us all.

I wrote this posting on Blog Action Day ’09 Climate Change (www.blogactionday.org). Blog Action Day is an annual event held every October 15 that unites the world’s bloggers in posting about the same issue on the same day with the aim of sparking discussion around an issue of global importance. I hope my contribution to Blog Action Day 2009 will help it be one of the largest-ever social change events on the web.

Check out this suggested list of Ways to get Involved from www.blogactionday.org

1. Sign the Tck Tck Tck campaign's "I am ready" pledge supporting an ambitious, fair and binding climate agreement in Copenhagen this fall: tcktcktck.org/people/i-am-ready
2. Register for the 350.org International Day of Climate Action October 24: www.350.org
3. Join the UK Government's "Act on Copenhagen" effort to promote a global deal on climate change: www.actoncopenhagen.decc.gov.uk/en
4. Learn and act with The Nature Conservancy's Planet Change site: change.nature.org
5. Watch and help promote Current TV's green-themed video journalism at: current.com/green
6. Support strong climate legislation in the US by making calls to your Senators with 1Sky: www.1sky.org/call
7. Put yourself on the Vote Earth map and upload your photos, pictures and weblinks to show the world future you want to see: www.earthhour.org/home
8. It was a repeat of Number 7 so I suggest you stop and take a break with either a nice fresh juice or an organic beer!
   
9. Join the Greenpeace cool IT challenge campaign to turn IT industry leaders into climate advocates and solution providers: www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/climate-change/cool-it-challenge
10. Add your personal story and tell the world what you will miss the most when you lose it to climate change with the United Nations Foundation Climate Board: www.unfoundation.org/global-issues/climate-and-energy/its-getting-personal
11. Find the latest and most popular climate change actions online at globalwarming.change.org
12. Join the Causecast community and find new ways to get involved with organizations working to end climate change. Watch videos, read news and support one of the many environmental nonprofits on Causcast. www.causecast.org/environment
13. Post to your blog or Twitter account about the impact of climate change on the world's poorest, and then take action with Oxfam International: www.oxfam.org.uk/climate

Enjoy your day of blogging and taking action on climate change everyday.

Grow well

Dr Merrin Pearse

P.S. who said blogging cannot take place with your mates!