For 4 consecutive Wednesdays this Fall, the Center for Global and International Studies has partnered with academic departments at KU and the Spencer Museum of Art to present films that shed light on global responses to environmental issues. Guest speakers and panel discussions accompany the screenings.
Waste Land, 9.26.2012
Filmed over nearly three years, Waste Land allows artist Vik Muniz as he journeys to his native Brazil and the world’s largest garbage dump, located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. There, he photographs an eclectic band of “catadores”—self-designated pickers of recyclable materials. Both the dignity and despair of the catadores is revealed as they begin to re-imagine their lives. This installment of the Environmental Film Festival is presented by the Center of Latin American Studies.
The Island President, 10.3.2012
After ending 30 years of despotic rule by bringing democracy to the Maldives, President Mohamed Nasheed now confronts the survival of his country and its people. The Maldives is one of the most low-lying countries in the world. A rise of three feet in sea level would submerge the 1200 islands of the Maldives enough to make them uninhabitable. A panel discussion follows the screening. This installment of the Environmental Film Festival is presented by the Center for Global & International Studies.
Manufactured Landscapes, 10.10.2012
Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky posits that manmade landscapes define us. He sees a certain physical beauty in the order and symmetry of some of these landscapes, despite troubling reasons for their existence and the subsequent degradation they pose to the environment. Cameras follow Burtynsky as he visits what he calls manufactured landscapes: slag heaps, e-waste dumps, huge factories in the Fujian and Zhejiang provinces of China.
This installment of the Environmental Film Festival is presented by the Center for East Asian Studies.