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The Winds of Change: Young Activists Pursue Climate Justice and Green Living

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The Winds of Change: Young Activists Pursue Climate Justice and Green Living

Born in the mid-to-late 1990s up to the early 2010s, Generation Z environmental activists agree that urgent action is needed to achieve climate justice, and they’re willing to do what it takes to get results. “Climate and environmental justice and environmental racism are very big concerns among youth, whether or not they are youth of color. It’s not just about energy, water or air—it’s also very much about people,” says Ana Garcia-Doyle, executive director of One Earth Collective. The Chicago nonprofit inspires action, facilitates learning and promotes environmental justice through annual programs like the One Earth Film Festival and One Earth Youth Voices, a summit designed to give voice to the next generation’s environmental concerns.

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We Follow Up on an Audience Question About Lead Water Pipes

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We Follow Up on an Audience Question About Lead Water Pipes

Audience discussions that follow One Earth screenings are meant to raise further awareness, but questions can arise that can’t always be answered on the spot. That’s exactly what happened on March 7. The five-minute film "Take Action Against Lead" by Young Filmmaker Contest winner Lion Birnecker touched a nerve in an audience full of activists wanting to know more about lead in water pipes and the dangers they pose.

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2023 Festival Kicks Off with Gusto

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2023 Festival Kicks Off with Gusto

Festive. And loud. That was the mood and volume at the 2023 One Earth Film Festival kick-off party Friday night as whistles, cheers, applause and cowbell noisemakers delivered on this year’s theme, “Let’s Get Loud!”

The 12th annual festival roared back to a fully in-person event, while filmmakers, whose works are featured selections this year, joined via Zoom and were projected on a large screen for everyone to see.

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'To the End' Filmmaker Rachel Lears Exposes Courageous Activism

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'To the End' Filmmaker Rachel Lears Exposes Courageous Activism

Filmed over four years of hope and crisis, "To the End" captures the emergence of a new generation of leaders and the movement behind the most sweeping climate change legislation in U.S. history. 

The award-winning film follows Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), activist Varshini Prakash, climate policy writer Rhiana Gunn-Wright, and political strategist Alexandra Rojas as they grapple with new challenges of leadership and power and work together to defend their generation's right to a future. From street protests to the halls of Congress, these four exceptional young leaders fight to shift the narrative around climate, revealing the crisis as an opportunity to build a better society.

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Oak Park Church Preaches the Green Gospel

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Oak Park Church Preaches the Green Gospel

Editor’s note: Euclid Avenue United Methodist Church will host an in person double feature for the One Earth Film Fest at 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 10: “The Falconer” + “Mardi & The Whites.” Doors open 45 minutes early to enjoy refreshments, visit with community partners, check in/register, and get best seats. Free registration here.

Located just 20 minutes by bicycle from Frank Lloyd Wright’s celebrated house in Oak Park, Illinois, Euclid Avenue United Methodist Church is the Village’s epicenter of sustainability initiatives. The 22,500-square-foot church was built in 1900 and remained the same, more or less, until the early 2010’s, when its leaders bit the green bullet. By 2014, they had completed two major energy-saving upgrades to the building. 

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Navajo Filmmaker Creates 'Powerlands' as Act of Resistance

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Navajo Filmmaker Creates 'Powerlands' as Act of Resistance

Editor’s note: “Powerlands” will screen as part of the One Earth Film Fest on Tuesday, March 7, at 6:30 p.m. CST, both virtually and in person at two locations: Pilot Project Brewing in Chicago and Oak Park Public Library in Oak Park. Get tickets for all options here.

Ivey-Camille Manybeads Tso is a young Navajo filmmaker who investigates the displacement of Indigenous people and the devastation of the environment caused by the same chemical companies exploiting the land where she was born. Her award-winning documentary, “Powerlands,,” chronicles the eerily similar struggles of Indigenous communities across Colombia, the Philippines, Mexico, and Standing Rock.  Despite being worlds apart, these communities face the same battles against the same big energy companies, like Peabody, BHP and Glencore.