Each year, Planet in Focus honours inspiring individuals who have made a difference to the environment, globally and within their communities, through their actions and body of work. Planet in Focus Eco Heroes are beacons of change and we honour their spirit, their dedication and their ability to inspire.

This year we are pleased to present Jennifer Baichwal with the Canadian Eco Hero Award.

Critically acclaimed and award-winning filmmaker Jennifer Baichwal has been weaving stories about the world around us for nearly two decades. With topics ranging from the photographic practices of Shelby Lee Adams in The True Meaning of Pictures and Edward Burtynsky in Manufactured Landscapes, to the environmental and economic impact of debt as imagined by Margaret Atwood in Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth, to the repercussions of our use of resources in her current work-in-progress, Water, Baichwal has a body of work that is inspiring and imaginative.

Baichwal and partner Nicholas de Pencier are the founders of Mercury Films Inc., a production company making films that are eclectic, skewed toward art and philosophy and challenge formal boundaries without being inaccessible. As a filmmaker and celebrated environmental hero exploring the engagement between artists and the environment, Baichwal’s portraits of artists and their work expands the narrative to encompass wider global awareness and discussions on issues of environmental concern.

Like her subjects, Baichwal refuses to be didactic in her films, making the case that we are all responsible for the well-being of the planet and that solutions are not always as simple or obvious as they are often made to seem.

Jennifer will be honoured with the Canadian Eco Hero Award at An Evening with Jennifer Baichwal on Friday, October 12 at 7:15 PM following the screening of Manufactured Landscapes at 5:15 PM.

Planet in Focus Eco Hero Awards are sponsored by