June 14th, 2010 | Posted in Educational Programs, Film Festival, Planet In Focus Events, Resources | Comments »
Posted by Kathleen Mullen
The last four months has been an adventure! I have been travelling all over Ontario with the Ontario Teachers’ Federation, bringing environmental films to communities all over the province. I have met with teachers, students and community members in Hamilton, Port Elgin, Penatanguishene, Southampton, Stratford and Pickering.
This program is exciting for the students as they get to put into practice some of the things they learn in the films. In Southampton, the high school students watched one of the films and then they planted trees all afternoon outside. It is amazing to watch environmentalism in action! At L’ecole Le Caron, the high school students came up with games, activities and points of discussion for the elementary students. They did a great job mentoring the younger ones.
Films such as Earth Keepers/Visionnaires planétaires, Campensinos: We will inherit the earth and Garbage! The Revolution Starts at Home got strong and positive reactions from the kids, eliciting a ton of questions. Events such as the one held in Hamilton featured an eco-fair with films, performances and speakers, and over 300 people from the community enjoying the co-evening.
It was lots of fun to see students, teachers and community members engaged and asking questions about what they can do to save the planet.
If you are a teacher, parent or student interested in having your school participate next year, please email me at kathleen@planetinfocus.org and we can send you more information.
June 8th, 2010 | Posted in Educational Programs, Film Festival, Planet In Focus Events | Comments »
Posted By Sarah Margolius
The first-ever Environmental Week Film Festival featured 20 timely and topical documentaries at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, home to Canada’s natural history collection and one of the largest in the world. Having been renovated over six long years, the results are magnificent – entirely new galleries and exhibitions, beautiful architectural elements including the stunning “lantern”, plus an all-new HD theatre to screen exciting audio-visual programming.
Co-presented with Planet in Focus, the imaginative and bold roster of films highlighted the natural world and our impact upon it. Many of these films literally rocked our worlds! Audiences experienced the exhilaration and fear of being on a boat chasing a Japanese whaling ship in Battleship Antarctica; humility as First Nations and northern peoples adapt to new environmental challenges within the magnificent landscapes of Gates of the Arctic; devastation and joy as Latin American children took us through their everyday lives and dependence on the land in Campesinos…We Will Inherit the Earth; and inspiration as we got up close and personal with a variety of environmental leaders from every corner of the planet in Visionnaires planétaires. These were just a handful of the powerful and engaging films featured. A roster of terrific speakers gave everyone a chance to ask questions and learn more about the topics tackled onscreen.
Thanks is owed to the Museum of Nature for making it possible to screen these powerful films from the Planet in Focus Environmental Film Library. After all, learning more about nature and the potential impact human interaction has on the environment allows us all to make better decisions about resources.
We’re working on an expanded national Museum program for 2011. We hope to bring this kind of programming to more audiences throughout 2011. Stay tuned for details!
The Environmental Week Film Festival at Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa took place June 2-6, 2010.
May 27th, 2010 | Posted in Film Festival | 1 Comment »
Sandra Steingraber attended the Toronto premiere of Living Downstream on May 18th
A wonderful evening was had by all on the premiere of Chanda Chevannes and Dr. Sandra Steingraber’s Living Downstream at the Bloor Cinema! A packed house gave our own Toronto-born director Ms. Chevannes and Dr. Steingraber a standing ovation. They discussed the ins and outs of their journey with Planet in Focus’ Director of Programming Kathleen Mullen, to a captivated and enthusiastic audience. Thanks to Book City for making available copies of Dr. Steingraber’s completely updated second edition of Living Downstream, and to Dr. Steingraber for signing books for audience members after the screening. Thank you to Women’s Healthy Environments Network and all of our wonderful volunteers who helped run this event and answer questions, and especially to Ms. Chevannes for making it all happen. It was a magical evening. If you are interested in bringing this powerful film to your community, please email us.
Living Downstream's Toronto premiere played to a packed Bloor Cinema
Living Downstream received a standing ovation at its Toronto premiere in May
Chanda fields questions during the Q & A with Kathleen and Sandra
