*** Notice: For the protection of property rights, this catalog is available for online browsing only. Please drop us a line if you would like to receive a copiable version of this catalog. Thank You!


Content

Sustainable Futuress


Sustainable Futures



ECO PIONEERS: A CASE STUDY OF BEGA

The town of Bega, on the south coast of NSW is working to transform their town into a sustainable community. Through the work of "Clean Energy for Eternity", this program follows Dr Matthew Nott as he charts their journey into solar PV, wind power and the local council's exploration of tidal energy. This program provides a useful case study on environmental sustainability for senior geography students.

Please contact us for primary and secondary schools pricing.

Note : The above titles may have some territorial restrictions. Please feel free to send us an enquiry.


DVD / 2013 / 22 minutes

>>> more details <<<


NATIONAL PARKS

National Parks conserve the natural beauty of a region with unique landscapes, flora and fauna for present and future generations. But what qualifies as a National Park? In this excellent program we examine Yellowstone National Park, The Lake District and Kakadu National Park and the challenges they face. It provides a brief history of the National Park movement, the growth of tourism and its impact, the conflicts between recreation and conservation, mining and conservation, environmental and economic needs as well as various interest groups including local and indigenous communities. This program is an ideal resource for students in geography, environmental and cultural studies.

Please contact us for primary and secondary schools pricing.

Note : The above titles may have some territorial restrictions. Please feel free to send us an enquiry.


DVD / 2013 / 22 minutes

>>> more details <<<


RESPONSIBLE TOURISM

The concept of responsible tourism revolves around the fact that when people travel and visit places away from their own community, they make an impact on local people, their homes, their local and wider environments. This program explores a range of areas relating to responsible tourism including sustainability, green tourism and 'greenwashing', environmental and economic impacts. We examine the positive and negative impacts of travel and discuss with industry experts, ways in which the industry can be made more sustainable. This program is an excellent resource for all students of tourism and sustainable management.

Please contact us for primary and secondary schools pricing.

Note : The above titles may have some territorial restrictions. Please feel free to send us an enquiry.


DVD / 2013 / 32 minutes

>>> more details <<<


TRANSFORMING RENEWABLE RESOURCES: BIOMASS & SOLAR ENERGY

This program stresses the importance of caring for our environment and provides an overview of multiple energy sources such as biomass and solar energy. Documents how some states are trying to enact laws that require local power plants to increase their power provided by renewable energy. To preserve our planet's health, scientists explore green projects involving ecologically friendly architecture and sustainable communities with solar homes and green housing developments.

DVD / 2012 / (Grades 6-12 and General Interest for Adults/All Audiences) / 18 minutes

>>> more details <<<


BIOPHILIC DESIGN: THE ARCHITECTURE OF LIFE

By Stephen R. Kellert and Bill Finnegan

A design revolution that connects buildings to the natural world, buildings where people feel and perform better.

Biophilic Design is an innovative way of designing the places where we live, work, and learn. We need nature in a deep and fundamental fashion, but we have often designed our cities and suburbs in ways that both degrade the environment and alienate us from nature.

The recent trend in green architecture has decreased the environmental impact of the built environment, but it has accomplished little in the way of reconnecting us to the natural world, the missing piece in the puzzle of sustainable development.

Come on a journey from our evolutionary past and the origins of architecture to the world's most celebrated buildings in a search for the architecture of life. Together, we will encounter buildings that connect people and nature--hospitals where patients heal faster, schools where children's test scores are higher, offices where workers are more productive, and communities where people know more of their neighbors and families thrive.

Featured are communities and buildings from Scandinavia, Germany, France and Britain to the Canadian and American northwest, American southwest, and New England. They include: California Academy of Sciences, Doernbecher Children's Hospital, Fallingwater, Viaduc des Arts, Google/YouTube Headquarters, Sahlgrenska Hospital (Psychiatric Department), High Point (Seattle Housing Authority), Johnson Wax Building, Sidwell Friends Middle School, Oxford Museum of Natural History, Village Homes (Davis, CA), and Kroon Hall (Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies).

Amongst those interviewed are: Edward O. Wilson, Bill McDonough, Judi Heerwagen, Jason McLennan, Tim Beatley, Bill Browning, Bert Gregory, Kent Bloomer, Claire Cooper Marcus, Michael Taylor, David Orr, Gus Speth, and Richard Louv.

Biophilic Design points the way toward creating healthy and productive habitats for modern humans.

Reviews
  • "Essential viewing for policy makers, planners, designers and anyone engaged in re-designing the future." - Bryony Schwan, Executive Director, The Biomimicry 3.8 Institute

  • "Natural environments are not amenities, and they are not mere 'resources' or quaint luxuries. They are essential to human mental, physical and social well-being, most urgently for our children. Stephen Kellert has yoked health and environment in a new and powerful way for all who view Biophilic Design." - Dr. Richard Jackson, Pediatrician, Professor and Chair, Environmental Health Sciences, University of California-Los Angeles

    DVD / 2011 / 62 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    CITY DARK, THE: A SEARCH FOR NIGHT ON A PLANET THAT NEVER SLEEPS

    Directed by Ian Cheney

    The definitive story of light pollution and the disappearing stars.

    THE CITY DARK chronicles the disappearance of darkness. The film follows filmmaker (and amateur astronomer) Ian Cheney (KING CORN, BIG RIVER,TRUCK FARM), who moves to New York City from Maine and discovers an urban sky almost completely devoid of stars. He poses a deceptively simple question, "What do we lose, when we lose the night?".

    Exploring the threat of killer asteroids in Hawai'i, tracking disoriented hatching turtles along the Florida coast, and rescuing birds on Chicago streets injured by collisions with buildings, Cheney unravels the myriad implications of a globe glittering with lights--including increased breast cancer rates from exposure to light at night, and a generation of kids without a glimpse of the universe above. In six chapters weaving together cutting-edge science with personal, meditative sequences reflecting on the human relationship to the sky, THE CITY DARK shines new light on the meaning of the dark.

    The film features stunning astrophotography and a cast of eclectic scientists, philosophers, historians, and lighting designers including Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, astronaut Don Pettit, neurologist Dr. George Brainard, Harvard Medical School scientist Dr. Steven Lockley, cosmologist Chris Impey, and lighting designer HerveDescottes.

    Reviews
  • "The most comprehensive and intelligent documentary on light pollution." - Bob Parks, Executive Director, International Dark-Sky Association

  • "A City Dark really makes you think about what kind of alternatives are both sustainable and feasible." - Louis Proyect: The Unrepentant Marxist

  • "Entertaining and thought-provoking...Mr. Cheney's film is a personal lament for the star-filled night sky he experienced growing up in Maine, but it is neither sorrowful nor a rant; he somehow manages to give this engaging work a sense of humor. He also manages to make it smart...This film makes you want to go find a starry sky to camp under quickly, before it's all gone." - Neil Genzlinger, The New York Times

    Awards
  • Grand Jury Prize for Best Feature, Environmental Film Festival at Yale
  • Jury Prize for Best Score/Music, SXSW Film Festival
  • New York Times Critics' Pick

    DVD / 2011 / 83 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    DREAMING OF A TREE HOUSE: FREI OTTO'S ECOLOGICAL PROJECT IN BERLIN

    By Beate Lendt

    DREAMING OF A TREE HOUSE is a film about the pioneering community-building project of the world-famous architect Frei Otto in Berlin, called the Okohaus¡Xan experimental, ecological, customized housing project in the city center.

    Including interviews with Frei Otto, Christine Kanstinger-Otto, Hermann Kendel, Yona Friedman, Anne Lacaton & Jean-Philippe Vassal, and other involved architects, planners, and inhabitants, the film shows the development and the philosophy of the project, which was built for the International Building Exhibition in Berlin 1987 (IBA).

    The "Ecohouse" project hosts a number of experimental solutions to adaptable home building and personalization. The film explores the ideas that motivated the project, its underlying sustainability themes, and asks how these ambitions were realized.

    DREAMING OF A TREE HOUSE ultimately asks: What can we learn from the Okohaus? How can its design, building process, and the experience of its 20-plus year occupation inform ecological and design issues currently relevant to our society?

    Award
  • World Premiere, 2011 Architecture Film Festival (Rotterdam)

    DVD (Color) / 2011 / 85 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    LIGHT BULB CONSPIRACY, THE

    By Cosima Dannoritzer

    The Light Bulb Conspiracy uncovers how planned obsolescence has shaped our lives and economy since the 1920's, when manufacturers deliberately started shortening the life of consumer products to increase demand. The film also profiles a new generation of consumers, designers and business people who have started challenging planned obsolescence as an unsustainable economic driver.

    The documentary begins by visiting the longest running light bulb in the world, which has burned continuously for over 110 years in Livermore, California. Initially, light bulbs were built to last. But the film finds historical evidence revealing how a cartel in the 1920's decided to produce bulbs limited to a maximum life of 1000 hours, making the humble light bulb one of the first examples of planned obsolescence and a model for increasing profits on other products.

    Shot over three years in Europe, the U.S. and Ghana, The Light Bulb Conspiracy investigates the evolution and impact of planned obsolescence through interviews with historians, economists, designers and manufacturers, along with archival footage and internal company documents. The film profiles several well-known historical advocates -- Bernard London, who famously proposed ending the Great Depression by mandating planned obsolescence, and Brook Stevens, whose post-war ideas became the gospel of the 1950's and helped shape the throwaway consumer society of today.

    The Light Bulb Conspiracy also looks at modern examples of planned obsolescence, including computer printers and the controversy over the inability to replace iPod batteries. Environmental consequences are seen most dramatically in the massive amounts of electronic waste that end up in uncontrolled dump sites in Third World countries such as Ghana. The film concludes with examples of consumers and businesses moving towards more sustainable practices and products, including Warner Philips, great grandson of the founder of Philips Electronics, who is producing an LED bulb designed to last 25 years.

    Reviews
  • "The film explores the issue of planned obsolescence, and argues that the light bulb is the first case of a product being designed to have a deliberately short lifespan." - Consumer Reports

  • "The Light Bulb Conspiracy combines strong stories with rare archival footage, tracing a century of planned obsolescence. The film investigates whether the modern consumer economy can sustain itself without planned obsolescence, and how a new business generation is trying to make planned obsolescence itself obsolete, to save the economy - and the planet.". - Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capitol

  • "The Light Bulb Conspiracy...led to vivid discussions about resource efficiency, economic growth, ecodesign, and other issues of interest to the WRF. The film was considered a 'must see' by many of our participants." - Xaver Edelmann, President World Resources Forum, Switzerland

    Awards
  • Best Documentary, Spanish Television Academy Awards
  • Best Feature Documentary, FILMAMBIENTE, Brazil
  • Best Film, SCINEMA, Australia
  • Maeda Special Prize / Japan Prize
  • Ondas Internacional Award, Spain
  • 1st Prize, Science, Technology and Education, GZDOC, China Special Jury Mention - FICMA, Spain

    DVD (Closed Captioned) / 2011 / (Grades 9 - Adult) / 75 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    MINING: FROM EXPLORATION TO REHABILITATION

    Starting with a brief historical overview of mining, this comprehensive program takes us out of the classroom, into the field, and down the mines. We visit Victoria's Stawell gold mine and meet experts from Rio Tinto, experiencing first-hand the processes and technology involved in modern mining operations. Following the mineral exploration flow chart, we discover how mining companies search for mineral deposits, explore the four most common types of modern mining operations, and explain of the froth flotation method of separating minerals from gangue. Finally, we examine the all-important process of land rehabilitation after the mine has closed.

    Please contact us for primary and secondary schools pricing.

    Note : The above titles may have some territorial restrictions. Please feel free to send us an enquiry.


    DVD / 2011 / 19 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    SUSTAINABLE FUTURES: DEFORESTATION ISSUES

    Thanks to sustainable rainforest management projects and government regulations, the deforestation rates in the Brazilian rainforest have declined over the past 10 years. However, 20% of the world's CO2 emissions are still caused by deforestation in Indonesia, Brazil and Congo. Kenya and Ivory coast are rapidly destroying thousand year-old jungles, affecting much more than just the local ecosystem. Overgrazing and urbanization are causing the loss of fertile land to deserts in Mongolia and China.

    DVD / 2011 / (Senior High - College) / 24 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    SUSTAINABLE FUTURES: LANDFILLS AND WASTE ISSUES

    Industrialized societies accumulate tons of waste, and the rising need for electronic devices only exacerbates the issue. The Sierra Club is pushing for standardization of electronic waste recycling, but so far it remains a limited market in the West. Recycling of electronics outsourced to India is done under terrible conditions, exposing workers to an array of toxic materials. Separation of organic and inorganic waste with subsequent recycling of everything from shoes to plastics into construction material is the base of an exemplary waste management program in the Philippines.

    DVD / 2011 / (Senior High - College) / 24 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    SUSTAINABLE FUTURES: SUSTAINABLE LIVING

    Throughout the world, innovative thinkers and entrepreneurs are transforming their communities, making the dream of sustainable living a reality. The United Kingdom's push for sustainable housing developments raises awareness of energy efficiency and promotes eco-friendly home design. Cement alternatives developed in Australia reduce the carbon footprint for concrete production by 60%. Two industrial designers from Colombia are creating fashion items from recycled tires. In the Philippines, the inventor of coconut fiber nets shows how his company helps prevent devastating mudslides in the region and provides employment to locals.

    DVD / 2011 / (Senior High - College) / 24 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    SUSTAINABLE FUTURES: TRANSPORT POLLUTION

    Pollutants from automotive transport are a major source of greenhouse gases. Government organizations, volunteer and business startups throughout the world are taking steps to reduce emissions of particulate and gas emissions from cars, scooters, buses and commercial aircrafts.

    DVD / 2011 / (Senior High - College) / 24 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    WAKING THE GREEN TIGER

    By Gary Marcuse and Betsy Carson

    Waking the Green Tiger tells the dramatic story of the rise of the first major grassroots environmental movement in China, a significant development that could reshape the country. Seen through the eyes of farmers, journalists, activists and a former government insider, the film traces the historical evolution of the movement and highlights an extraordinary campaign to stop a huge dam project slated for the Upper Yangtze River in southern China.

    Featuring archival footage never seen outside China, and interviews with insiders and witnesses, the documentary also portrays the earlier history of Chairman Mao's campaigns to conquer nature in the name of progress. Mao mobilized millions of people in campaigns that reshaped China's landscape, destroyed lakes, forests and grasslands, and unleashed dust storms. Despite the evident consequences, critics of this approach were silenced for decades.

    The green movement emerged when a new environmental impact law was passed in 2004. For the first time in China's history, ordinary citizens gained the right to speak out and take part in government decisions. Green activism grew into a larger movement as local villagers and urban activists joined forces to oppose a massive new dam at Tiger Leaping Gorge on the Upper Yangtze that would have displaced 100,000 people. Their extraordinary campaign is a primary focus of the film.

    Reviews
  • "Gary Marcuse's stirring documentary celebrates the brave souls at the forefront of China's new revolution." - Vancouver International Film Festival

  • "Stirring... this engaging documentary shakes up a lot of assumptions we may have about China and opens our eyes to a revolution that brings on public debate." - Toronto Star

  • "Waking the Green Tiger is wonderful, an amazing story that opens an unexpected window onto China." - Ronald Wright, author, A Short History of Progress

    Awards
  • Best Canadian Documentary, Planet in Focus Film Festival, Toronto
  • Winner, Top 10 Canadian Films, Vancouver International Film Festival

    DVD (English and Mandarin, Closed Captioned, With English Subtitles) / 2011 / (Grades 9 - Adult) / 78 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    WINDFALL

    Director: Laura Israel

    Wind power... it's sustainable ... it burns no fossil fuels...it produces no air pollution. What's more, it cuts down dependency on foreign oil.

    That's what the people of Meredith, NY first thought when a wind developer looked to supplement the rural farm town's failing economy with a farm of their own -- that of 40 industrial wind turbines. But when a group of townspeople discover the impacts that a 400-foot high windmill could bring to their community, Meredith's residents become deeply divided as they fight over the future of their community. With wind development in the United States growing annually at 39 percent, Windfall is an eye-opener for anyone concerned about the environment and the future of renewable energy.


    DVD-R / 2011 / 83 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    FORGOTTEN SPACE, THE

    By Allan Sekula and Noel Burch

    The "forgotten space" of Allan Sekula and Noel Burch's essay film is the sea, the oceans through which 90% of the world's cargo now passes. At the heart of this space is the container box, which, since its invention in the 1950s, has become one of the most important mechanisms for the global spread of capitalism.

    The film follows the container box along the international supply chain, from ships to barges, trains, and trucks, mapping the byzantine networks that connect producers to consumers (and more and more frequently, producing nations to consuming ones). Visiting the major ports of Rotterdam, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Guangdong province, and many places between, it connects the economic puzzle pieces that corporations and governments would prefer remain scattered.

    We meet people who have been reduced to cogs in this increasingly automated machine - the invisible laborers who staff the cargo ships, steer the barges, drive the trucks, and migrate to the factories, and whose low wages form the base of the entire enterprise. The film also introduces us to those who this system's efficiency has marginalized: the longtime unemployed occupants of a California tent city, Dutch farmers whose land is bisected by a new high-speed train line, and the displaced residents of Doel, Belgium, whose city is slated for demolition in order to expand the port of Antwerp.

    Employing a wide range of materials and styles, from interviews to classic film clips, essayistic voiceover to observational footage, THE FORGOTTEN SPACE provides a panoramic portrait of the new global economy and a compelling argument about why it must change.

    Reviews
  • "An engrossing and provocative essay film... Various experts offer informative analysis, but the testimony of seamen, factory workers and residents of a California homeless encampment is at the heart of the film's guiding ethical and aesthetic principles, which have to do with the defense of human dignity in the face of a system that so often appears hostile or indifferent to it." - A.O. Scott, The New York Times

  • "THE FORGOTTEN SPACE begins as an investigative documentary and concludes as a mythopoeic essay on modernity and the sea." - Artforum

  • "To say that the subject of THE FORGOTTEN SPACE is the global transformation of labor caused by container cargo shipping is like saying that WAGON MASTER is a Western. Noel Burch and Allan Sekula's essay film is a journey around the world, to the ports of Rotterdam, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Bilbao-each a trove of stories, encounters, and observations at times angry and at times wry. The whole thing is held together by Sekula's adventure-happy, politically astute, partisan commentary, which itself is a masterpiece of nonfiction." - Olaf Moller, Film Comment

    Award
  • Premiere, 2010 Venice International Film Festival

    DVD (Color) / 2010 / 112 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    REDUCING WATER POLLUTION

    This program focuses on the protection of Puget Sound - a national ecological treasure - through the efforts of Washington's Office of Shellfish and Water Protection (Health Science Cluster); a TV station that raises environmental awareness by reporting on the Sound (Arts, A/V Technology, and Communications Cluster); a nonprofit organization that educates the public about the Sound's ecosystem (Education and Training Cluster); and a local shellfish farm that sustainably harvests oysters (Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources Cluster).

    DVD / 2010 / 25 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    GREEN POWER, CLEAN CHOICES

    Powering houses and heating water in more energy efficient, sustainable ways is an important component of many remodeling projects. Whether it's through the use of passive or active solar technologies, wind, or other renewable power sources, today's remodelers need to understand the basics of green power so they can guide their clients toward smarter choices and then integrate these technologies into a home in the most intelligent way. Green Power, Clean Choices provides a fundamental understanding of how these technologies work and takes viewers to residential installation sites to see these systems in real -world applications.

    DVD / 2010 / 30 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPING: GROWING A GREENER HOME

    Over the course of this program, viewers will learn how a green approach to landscaping can reduce the amount of energy needed to heat and cool a house. The role of landscaping as a system, the connection between the outdoor habitat and the home as a living space, the proper management of rainwater and runoff, the value of native plants, and the benefits of green roofs are also explored. Visits to residential project sites with the landscape architects and designers who created them are included as well, offering insights into the principles and design philosophies that have shaped their work.

    DVD / 2010 / 30 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    THINKING GREEN, BUILDING SMART

    The fundamental difference between a green approach to building and remodeling and a conventional approach is the thinking that guides the project. This program explores the thought process at the core of green architectural design and construction as it takes viewers behind the scenes of an architectural firm specializing in sustainable design, a remodeler who has built a green construction business, a supplier of eco -friendly building materials, and a homeowner who has remodeled his house from the ground up using green materials, technologies, and practices.

    DVD / 2010 / 30 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    I.M. PEI: BUILDING CHINA MODERN

    Directed by Anne Makepeace

    Architect I.M. Pei returns to his home city of Suzhou, China to build a modern museum that complements the architecture of the 2,500 year-old city and sets a course for modern Chinese architecture.

    I.M. Pei has been called the most important living modern architect, defining the landscapes of some of the world's greatest cities. A monumental figure in his field and a laureate of the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize, Pei is the senior statesman of modernism and last surviving link to such great early architects as Le Corbusier, Gropius, and Mies van der Rohe.

    Entering into the twilight of his career and well into his eighties when the project began, Pei returns to his ancestral home of Suzhou, China to work on his most personal project to date. He is commissioned to build a modern museum in the city's oldest neighborhood which is populated by classical structures from the Ming and Qing dynasties. For the architect who placed the pyramid at the Louvre, the test to integrate the new with the old is familiar but still difficult. The enormous task is to help advance China architecturally without compromising its heritage. In the end, what began as his greatest challenge and a labor of sentiment, says Pei, ultimately becomes "my biography."

    Reviews
  • "A moving and intimate portrayal of I.M. Pei's lifelong quest to define modern architecture that is true to its cultural roots. Building China Modern follows I.M. Pei's eight year journey and his challenges to define Chinese modern architecture in the Suzhou Museum--to make it, in his Chinese words, 'Su he xin,' meaning 'Suzhou yet new.'" - Shirley Young, Governor and founding member, Committee of 100

  • "Striving to balance architectural advancement with respect for the grandeur of China's heritage, Pei works on his most challenging--and most personal--task yet...Highly recommended." - The Midwest Book Review

  • "Its real subject is the rapid change sweeping China and the tensions between modernity concomitant with change...The filmmakers could not have found a better subject than Pei through which to tell this story of how one reconciles such tensions...[The film is] a loving tribute to a second-generation modernist." - Sharon McHugh, World Architecture News

    Award
  • CINE Golden Eagle Award

    DVD / 2010 / (Grades 10-12, College, Adult) / 53 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    IS AUSTRALIA'S POPULATION GROWTH SUSTAINABLE?

    Australia's population is growing faster than the world average. In the near future, where will an extra 10-15 million people live? Will we have enough water, food and energy resources to meet growing needs? Starting with a brief overview of current population trends, this thought-provoking program explores the growth predictions for Australia's population and addresses the critical issues of food and water, energy, standard of living, and the environment. Dr Rebecca Kippen from the Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute lends her expert perspective and helps us examine possible policy solutions to help deal with Australia's growing population.

    Please contact us for primary and secondary schools pricing.

    Note : The above titles may have some territorial restrictions. Please feel free to send us an enquiry.


    DVD / 2010 / 18 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    POST-CARBON FUTURES

    Directed by Yves Billy

    Could the bluish-green liquid sloshing around in a laboratory beaker save the world from climate change? The liquid is an algae-based bio-fuel, and scientist Steve Mayfield believes it is a sign that a post-carbon future is drawing closer.

    If we're going to avoid catastrophic climate change, we will need to move away from fossil fuels as quickly as possible. But which alternatives are the most promising?

    POST-CARBON FUTURES, examines the options&mdashfrom massive wind and solar projects, to re-engineering the planet itself, to more modest local efforts.

    From his office in sunny California, John Woolard of BrightSource Energy sees the future in solar power. The company runs the largest solar plant in the US. Located in Nevada, it produces enough energy to power 15,000 homes. Woolard says we don't have an energy problem, we have a collection and distribution problem. But with 2,000 new cars hitting the road in Beijing every day, and China set to open a new coal-fired plant a week for the next decade, the truth is we will require far more energy than solar and wind energy can produce&mdashunless we want to cover the surface of the earth with collector panels and windfarms.

    Some believe the solution lies in enormous, continent-altering projects&mdashsuch as a plan to blanket the Sahara in solar panels to produce electricity for Europe. Meanwhile, the developers of the proposed green city of Cao Fei Dian, 150 miles from Beijing, see the future in a city built from scratch on in-filled coastal land.

    POST-CARBON FUTURES makes the case that we need a completely different approach to economic growth and prosperity&mdashthat geo-engineering and building huge projects simply in order to maintain a consumer society makes no sense.

    British environmentalist Tim Jackson, from the University of Surrey, and French writer Paul Aries both argue that our current economic system has trapped us into needing to constantly increase our emissions. Aries, a leading advocate of the "de-growth" movement passionately argues for a re-imagining of our economic system&mdashnot just cutting back on emissions but redefining prosperity itself.

    The film travels to the UK, where we visit the British "transition town" of Totnes, which is converting itself into an environmentally sustainable community, and meet permaculture activists in San Francisco who dream of turning the city's 1,800 acres of lawns into sources of food, fuel and fibre.

    The Copenhagen and Cancun climate summits resulted in stalemates. But perhaps the focus on international treaties is misplaced. Maybe our best hope for bold changes lies right in our backyards.


    DVD (Color) / 2010 / 53 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENT ISSUES

    Large urban cities consume large amounts of resources and create vast amounts of waste that needs to be dealt with. For decades little or no concern was paid to this vital issue, but now there is a much greater emphasis being paid to urban sustainability. What is sustainability though and how can cities become more sustainable given that they are already thriving centres? This program examines ways in which policy makers and business introduce strategies that make a city run more efficiently, use less non-renewable resources and reduce their carbon footprint.

    Please contact us for primary and secondary schools pricing.

    Note : The above titles may have some territorial restrictions. Please feel free to send us an enquiry.


    DVD / 2010 / 24 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    ECOLOGY

    Topics include: Diversity of Organisms, Population Ecology, Communities and Ecosystems, and Global Issues.

    DVD / 2010 / 30 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    RENEWABLE FUELS

    Traditionally we have relied heavily upon non-renewable energy resources, however we have now reached a tipping point globally where the environment cannot sustain such impact, nor do we have the resources to continue this. This program clearly shows the environmental impacts of both renewable and non-renewable energy sources. It guides us through numerous renewable energy sources, how the energy is collected and the pros and cons of renewable energy. The program also explores what is happening around the globe with the introduction of wind farms, wave parks and solar farms. This is an up-to-date look at a vital issue.

    Please contact us for primary and secondary schools pricing.

    Note : The above titles may have some territorial restrictions. Please feel free to send us an enquiry.


    DVD / 2008 / 24 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    THE IMPORTANCE OF BIODIVERSITY

    The astonishing growth of human population over the last 200 years has caused drastic and hopefully not irreversible damage to ecosystems worldwide. As we seek food, shelter, and natural resources, we damage the fragile balance of natural wildlife. If we continue at this pace, it is estimated 25% of the current species on Earth may become extinct in the near future. Biodiversity is crucial to sustaining life on Earth, and in this episode of Environment and Ecology, students learn about the efforts being made by scientists all over the world to maintain this vital biodiversity.

    DVD / 2007 / (Grades 4-9) / 16 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    WASTE = FOOD

    By Rob van Hattum

    In a world where more and more societies with high consumption rates generate excessive amounts of waste, traditional environmental notions of reducing or recycling waste products are no longer sufficient. The new theory of ecologically intelligent design argues that manufacturers' products, when discarded, should either be completely recyclable in the Technosphere or become biodegradable food for the Biosphere.

    WASTE = FOOD explores this revolutionary "cradle to cradle" (as opposed to "cradle to grave") concept through interviews with its leading proponents, American architect William McDonough and German ecological chemist Michael Braungart, coauthors of Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. Their ideas are increasingly being embraced by major corporations and governments worldwide, unleashing a new, ecologically-inspired industrial revolution.

    The film shows how their "intelligent product system," utilizing completely non-toxic and sustainable production methods, has been adapted by major corporations, visiting a Swiss textile factory, a German clothing manufacturer, the Nike shoe headquarters, a U.S. furniture manufacturer, the Ford Motor Company, and a government housing project in China. The manufacturers discuss the concept of "eco-effectiveness," designing for eco-safety as well as cost efficiency, in their respective industries.

    WASTE = FOOD also illustrates McDonough's environmentally sound architectural designs, where buildings function like trees, and become part of nature rather than conflict with it, including his designs for Ford's new River Rouge plant, a GreenHouse factory for the Herman Miller company, and a model village in rural China.

    Review
  • "An exciting introduction to the work of American architect/designer William McDonough and German ecological chemist Michael Braungart, who may well be starting a new industrial revolution." - The Flaming Grasshopper

    Award
  • Silver Dragon, 2006 Beijing International Science Film Festival

    DVD (Color) / 2006 / 51 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    WORLD POPULATION PROBLEMS

    As the population crisis worsens, we are faced with the possibility that the earth may no longer be able to sustain such large numbers of people.

    Learning Objectives
    1) Students will be motivated to consider the problems, such as poverty and hunger, that are caused by the overpopulation of our earth.
    2) Students will gain knowledge of the rates at which population grew in the past and of the rate at which it is growing in the present.
    3) An understanding of what determines the birth rate will be provided and the replacement-level fertility rate will be examined.


    DVD / 2005 / 16 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    SUSTAINABLE DESIGN: SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE

    Explore planning and design; basic building design; embodied energy and resource use in buildings; heating, cooling and ventilation; lighting; infrastructures; and a holistic, or complete, view of the whole building and design process. This program has interviews with Robert & Diane Gilman, Amory Lovins of Rocky Mountain Institute and Mike & Judy Corbett of Village Homes. You'll also hear from professors of Vernacular Architecture, Sustainable Design and Community Planning, an Indoor Environmental Quality Specialist, two Solar Architects, a General Building Contractor, a Landscape Architect and two other Architecture Professors.

    DVD / 1994 / 38 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    GLOBAL CHANGE: WITNESSING THE IMPACTS

    This program looks at atmospheric and biodiversity change and the global warming phenomenon. We investigate the effects of pollution on various ecosystems and why the Arctic has been affected by pollution from Southeast Asia, helping us understand how our local activities may be affecting people on the other side of the world for years to come.

    DVD / (Grades 9-12) / 27 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    HYDROLOGIC CYCLE, THE

    This program examines one of the most important processes that affect life on earth. The water cycle is covered from transpiration through evaporation to condensation, precipitation and run-off. This is an excellent introduction to a fast moving process that students see on a daily basis.

    DVD / 21 minutes

    >>> more details <<<


    FEEDING A HUNGRY PLANET

    Scientists throughout the world are researching and implementing sustainable food production systems. Key concepts that underline this vital research are ecosystem preservation and natural resource conservation. Food production systems touch nearly every aspect of life - from farms and industrial processing plants to markets, grocery stores and the dinner table. Students will learn about the future sustainable 'food cycle'.

    DVD / (Grades 6-12) / 15 minutes

    >>> more details <<<

    ***Price on web-site may not be current and is subject to modification by quotation***



    Email :
    inquiry@learningemall.com

    Websites :
    http://www.learningemall.com [ English ]
    http://www.learningemall.com.hk [ Chinese ]