All about the environment

Now in its seventh year, Green Screen, the Environmental Film Festival 2017 will begin on November 2 with the screening of Death by a Thousand Cuts at Digicel IMAX. The documentary thriller examines the unsolved murder of a Dominican ranger, amidst the battle to save the Dominican Republic’s protected forests from being depleted by Haitian nationals who scour the hills for fuel.

Green Screen is an annual festival of top local, regional and international films that highlight crucial environmental issues. It is a production of Sustain T&T, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to highlighting issues of environmental conservation, alternative energy, climate change, social justice and sustainable development.

The festival will run from November 2 - 10, with screenings, receptions, panels on issues like disaster preparedness, indigenous women’s activism, marine conservation and the cocoa industry. This year’s theme, In Deep, signifies commitment to the cause of sustainable development; focuses attention on marine resources; and calls for action in the wake of severe hurricanes toward the development of comprehensive disaster preparedness planning.

Each year issues of sustainability and conservation are highlighted to secondary school students through the medium of film, with free screenings for school groups at Digicel IMAX. Sustain T&T is inviting members of the private sector to invest in the education of the nation’s youth by sponsoring school groups to attend this year’s Green Screen Schools Screenings, which will take place at Digicel IMAX on November 3, 6 and 7.

This year’s festival features several collaborations and special events. Green Screen has teamed up with various organisations to present the following panel discussions:

Our Waters
November 4, Medulla Gallery, 10 am: This discussion will explore what individuals and institutions can do to ensure we preserve and protect our marine resources. In conjunction with the Institute for Marine Affairs, Sustain T&T has produced the films The Bottle and Nature Man to bring these issues to light.

Disaster Preparedness - How ready are we?
November 4, Medulla Gallery, 12 noon.

Women and the Environment: Eco-Feminism
November 4, Medulla Art Gallery, 6:30 pm.

Sweet Talk: Chocolate Film Series & Talk
November 9, Medulla Art Gallery, 6pm.

Green Screen 2017 will close on a festive note with a closing party at Scott Street, St. Clair on November 10.

Full information on films, events, trailers, panels, guest film makers and schedules is available on Green Screen’s website at greenscreentt.com