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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nIt introduced a couple of different climate scientists as\nwell as a brief inclusion of Greta Thunberg. Then, the movie provided us the\nfacts. Although I do not feel like I gained any new information, it was a\ndecent watch. It showed permafrost melting, rising sea levels, methane being\nreleased from frozen lakes, rising temperatures causing bats to die (I may have\nteared up a bit during this portion), and damage to human society caused by\nintense and aggressive natural disasters. It covered a lot of the environmental\nissues that are already occurring and stressed that it can get so much worse.\nThe film included a couple of charts and videos that showed the rise in\ntemperatures as well as the rise in deforestation practices. By including these\nmore data-based graphics, I got the sense that the film was trying very hard to\npush the idea that climate change is, indeed, a fact. Even when they focused on\nthe methane being released from frozen lakes, they proved this by poking holes\nin the ice and holding a source of fire over it, and the flame would roar. As\nclimate change has been a hotly contested topic of current time, providing\nshots like this probably have the goal of inducing a shock factor. I say this\nbecause I was shocked seeing that happen. The inclusion of Greta also pushed\nforward the idea of having to do something in order to combat climate change. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the film had completed, they set up the panel. This\nwas oriented by the speaker first asking each person an individually question.\nThe first panelist, Bill Ripple, was asked what he would say to people who\ndoubt climate change. Ripple said this happened to him the other day and he\nmerely pulled out a chart showing the rise in carbon dioxide levels. He\ncontinued to say that we are not doing nearly enough and that we need to focus\non consumption and energy issues to have the change we need. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another panelist, Dr. Greg Walker, was asked about\ncollaboration efforts and progress here in Oregon. His responses mentioned that\nthere exists a false dichotomy in the minds of people, because often we believe\nthat we can either have many jobs for people, or we care for the environment.\nThere is not an in between. However, he said, by combating this dichotomy, we\ncan hopefully find ways to reorient our society in order to be environmentally\nconscious and keep people in jobs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lastly, the youth panel was comprised of a graduate student\nfocused on coral bleaching and a young girl in high school practicing climate\nactivism. Overall, they both seemed to have faith and want to fight for change.\nThe graduate student mentioned resilience for conservation. The high school\nstudent mentioned working with community. Each essentially had their own way to\ntackle climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In sum, the panelists provided ideas about promoting that\nclimate change is indeed happening, and by working with community, by working\nto make voices heard, by fighting to reorient our society, we can potentially\ncombat the degradation that is to come. As the film showed, we are already\nexperiencing a certain amount of damage, and it will only get worse if nothing\nis done. Film and speakers combined is a powerful way to inspire people to get\ninvolved in activism. By hearing personal stories, by seeing facts and data,\nthis is how the message will get out and how it will be accepted. I know that I\nfound myself thinking about the movie days after the fact, considering what\nthings I could do myself to do my part. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
This February, Odd Fellow Hall was hosting an eco-film festival, playing three separate movies over three separate Fridays that all had an environmental focus, hence the term eco-film festival. I just so happened to go to the last film that they were going to show. Right downtown was this hidden little staircase, leading up to… Continue reading