Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival, Xavier University

Films about our Planet! Films that Inspire!

North America’s Largest Environmental Film Festival comes to Schiff Conference and Banquet Center, Xavier University
The Buckeye Forest Council joins Xavier’s Sustainability Committee when they co-host the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival On Tour at the Schiff Conference and Banquet Center, Xavier University on Friday October 30 from 6:00 ‘“ 9:30 p.m.

Wild & Scenic On Tour brings together a selection of films from the annual festival held the second week of January in Nevada City, CA. The films tell a story about our planet, highlighting issues, providing solutions and giving a call to action, says Tour Manager, Susie Sutphin. Their collective energy empowers communities to initiate conversations that can bring about compromise and collaborative efforts that positively impact our wild places.

Event Details:
When: Friday October 30, 2009 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Where: Schiff Conference and Banquet Center, Xavier University – 1624 Herald Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio 45207
Map link: http://www.cintascenter.com/

Ticket Prices: Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children under 12 and free for students with University ID

Tickets can be purchased by contacting:
‘¢ Kathleen Smythe – smythe@xavier.edu 513 745-3279
‘¢ http://www.xavier.edu/green/
‘¢ David Maywhoor ‘“ david@buckeyeforestcouncil.org 614-487-9290
‘¢ http://www.buckeyeforestcouncil.org/

The Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival was started by the watershed advocacy group, the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) in 2003. SYRCL is sharing their success as an environmental group with others organizations to bring the festival to over 90 communities nationwide. It is building a network of grassroots organizations connected by a common goal of using film to inspire activism. The festival’s namesake is in celebration of achieving Wild & Scenic status for 39 miles of the South Yuba River in 1999. They celebrate their 8th annual in January 2010 in Nevada City, CA.

The film festival draws a community together. These films bring the daily work of saving our earth to life. Said David Maywhoor, Executive Director ‘“ Buckeye Forest Council, They represent people who we can recognize in our lives; from the back yard gardener to the community-based environmental activist toiling to make their community a better place to live.

As Paul Hawken recently reminded us in a commencement address, we are aware and often disturbed by the challenges we face as inhabitants on planet Earth, but also find hope in the lives and actions of those who seek to restore the Earth. These films allow us to meet some people working for change and to imagine a place for ourselves in those efforts, said Kathleen Smythe, Co-Chair of Xavier’s Sustainability Committee.

Featured at the tour venue in Cincinnati will be these and other films:
Homegrown Revolution – Jules Dervaes – In the midst of a densely urban setting in downtown Pasadena, radical change is taking root. For over twenty years, the Dervaes family have transformed their home into an urban homestead. As a family for this new paradigm, they harvest nearly 3 tons of organic food from their 1/10 acre garden while incorporating many back-to-basics practices, as well as solar energy and biodiesel

Papa Tortuga – Rob and Elise Wilson – Fernando shows that one person CAN make a difference. His efforts in Tecolutla, Vera Cruz, Mexico, have helped to save the endangered Lora Sea Turtles from extinction.

Renewal – Marty Ostrow, Terry Kay Rockefeller – In communities across America, people are rolling up their sleeves in practical and far-reaching ways. Offering a profound message of hope, this film shows people driven by their spiritual and religious convictions, being called to re-examine what it means to be human and how we live on this planet.

The festival is a natural extension of Buckeye Forest Council and Xavier’s Sustainability Committee as we work to inspire people to act on behalf of the environment.