Inconvenient or Convenient? Contest Highlights Solutions to Climate Change
Those film buffs among us who watched the Academy Awards show on February 25 saw An Inconvenient Truth win the Oscar for Best Documentary feature film. This film presents Vice President Al Gore’s crusade to affect global warming by debunking misconceptions and galvanizing ordinary citizens to act.
Now, Seventh Generation and TreeHugger are giving us an opportunity to learn how to act by offering up a collection of “inspired, pragmatic videos to get us out of this mess.” As sponsors of Convenient Truths: a green video contest, they have created a user-generated video competition that offers compelling solutions to combat global warming. The contest is a chance for concerned citizens to share the ways in which we can all save our planet. According to the contest website (www.treehugger.com), Al Gore’s film highlighted the growing global warming threat and their video contest offers a way to curb the impact. While An Inconvenient Truth presented the dilemma, Seventh Generation and TreeHugger are asking entrants to show us all the potential ways of solving the problem. Filmmakers were encouraged to highlight components of everyday life and actions being taken to reduce individual carbon footprints.
A group of judges, including celebrity activists and high-profile personalities such as Arianna Huffington, Darryl Hannah, Ed Begley, Jr., and Perry Farrell (to name but a few), will be awarding prizes-one of which is an all-expenses-paid eco-tour for two to the Alaskan Wildlife Refuge (including air fare, travel gear, and carbon offsets). But before the judges announce the winners, we have the opportunity to whittle down the list of nearly 100 videos by channeling our “inner eco-critic” in rating the submissions.
So, where is a Chicago filmmaker to go when setting out to craft an entry? CNT, of course!!!
Robert Aguilar and Dorothee Royal-Hedinger came to our office and spoke with Anthony Star to get a definition of what global warming is. Anthony offers this simple definition: “Globally warming is the increase in the earth’s atmospheric temperature caused by human activities.” In the completed piece, this definition is contrasted with answers provided by the average man- and woman-on-the-street. The video reveals a diversity of perspectives about what global warming is and the variety of arenas affected by it. Anthony also suggests that the single best thing people can do right now is “walk more.”
Check out the video at http://truths.treehugger.com/video/contest_entry_what_can_regular.php to see how Chicagoans are individually “doing their part.” Visit the site by March 14 to participate in the rating process.
