Waste.
The creation, mitigation, and elimination of our wasteful ways might be the defining environmental issue we face together in the 21st century. From food to single-use plastics to electronics to clothing, the stuff we are consuming and tossing on an increasingly rapid basis is estimated to cause a staggering 60 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and between 50 and 80 percent of total land, material and water use:
60-80 percent of the impacts on the planet come from household consumption. If we change our consumption habits, this would have a drastic effect on our environmental footprint as well.” – Diana Ivanova, a PhD candidate at the Norwegian University of Science
There’s a silver lining in this: while the effects of mass individual consumption are environmentally devastating, this is also where we can effect significant change. We’ve programmed a few gems into our film festival lineup this year that revel in the grassroots movements sprouting up around the globe to keep our things and our food out of landfills, making better use of our precious resources while cutting back on wasteful consumption. These are the roots that take hold and result in a sea-change of human behaviour, blossoming into change at the level of government and industry policy.
Join us, get inspired about waste!