Earth Days Movie

This past weekend (November 2o, 2009, to be exact), filmmaker Robert Stone introduced a showing of his newest film, Earth Days.

In Robert’s own words, he wanted to make a movie “not about the present, not about the future, not doom and gloom, but about how we got here.” In doing so, he hoped to show how today, politics tends to be the issue when it comes to environmentalism, and he also hopes that movie will “point a way forward.”

I’m not a professional movie reviewer, in fact, I go to movies less often than your typical hermit, but I’ll do my best here to give this film it’s due.

Stone immediately lays politics out as part of his statement, as the opening scene shows statements about the environment being made by presidents starting with John F. Kennedy, all the way through George W. Bush (who’s statements on the environment for his entire eight-year tenure in office were limited to, apparently, “We are addicted to oil.” Duh.).

Stone then introduces nine “pioneer” environmentalists, each with a different background and modus operandi:

• “The Radical” – Stephanie Mills
• “The Conservationist” – Stewart Udall
• “The Astronaut” – Rusty Schweickart
• “The Biologist” – Paul Ehrlich
• “The Motivator” – L. Hunter Lovins
• “The Futurist” – Stewart Brand
• “The Organizer” – Denis Hayes
• “The Politician” – Paul (Pete) McCloskey
• “The Forecaster” – Dennis Meadows

The film speaks of some of the typical “demons” of the environmental movement, including the interstate highway system and automobiles, and theorizes that one of the core problems of the environmental movement is that it asks human beings to move outside of their instinctual “reaction” mode. Early humans faced many risks, and those who survived were the ones who, when faced with immediate threats or opportunities, made a choice rooted in the moment – without having to consider the long-term consequences of their actions. In other words, “cavemen,” when faced with a woolly mammoth, ran. They didn’t have to consider where to run, nor what they would do once they escaped the creature. Conventional business works – even today – in much the same way. Short-term considerations are most important, if the long-term is even thought about at all.

So the film indeed shows a history of the environmental movement, from Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring” to the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970, and beyond. It chronicles the “utopia/Back to the Land” movement, where people left the “civilized” world and attempted to live completely off the grid and separate from society at large. And it also chronicles the failure, in general, of that offshoot of the movement.

The breakthrough moment of the evening, of the film, and of the environmental movement itself was stated by Hunter Lovins, who does not mince words: “The world around us is pretty much the world we’re gonna have, and we have to work with that or we’re gonna lose.” This recognition was the impetus for so many groups working together toward the same goal and the launch of the first Earth Day – as well as all the Earth Days that have followed.

To finish up the film, Rusy Schweickart talks about his concept of humanity needing to move away from the idea of the Earth taking care of us to an idea of us having to take care of the Earth. I think that this is a fitting close, and actually is a very exciting and hopeful statement. I think that the concept is a great metaphor to life in general.

The idea of “Mother Earth” keeps us mired in childhood – humanity as infant and child. But as infants and children get older, they “need” their mother less and less – or at least they think they need their mother less and less. Teenagers begin to rebel and feel out their limitations, sometimes destructively. This is the stage I feel humanity is in today – and was in when the environmental movement truly appeared on the scene.

But tomorrow – tomorrow humanity moves into adulthood. When we realize that our mother gave of herself everything she could to get us where we are today, asking for nothing in return. And because of that, we have a duty – even a need – to ensure that she is taken care of. Even if we still think that we don’t need our mother, we make sure she is well taken care of for the rest of her life. Humanity’s next step is this one, and it’s a great way to think about our human condition – the same as the span of lifetime, except over millions or billions of lifetimes.

In the talkback after the screening, Director Robert Stone stated that it seems like the movement has moved from one of grassroots activism putting pressure on government, to being led by scientists, politicians, and career activists, but losing the grassroots.

In summary – Earth Days discusses the successes as well as the failures of the environmental movement, since before it was even considered a movement. But it certainly does point us in a direction for the future:

1. individuals are the ones who make the biggest impact and show that as humans we are far more cohesive in our support of the Earth than the media and politicians and pundits make it seem.
2. we need to work together on the big picture instead of in seeming opposition on smaller and smaller “niche” issues.
3. we need to change what people use to live instead of trying to change how they live. Human nature is incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to change. Products and services, however, change on a daily basis. It will be much easier to make it unquestionably superior to use products and consume services that are environmentally-friendly than to keep using polluting, unsustainable, conventional products and services.

Namaste,
A. Caleb Hartley