Do we belong to 'The Age of Stupid'?
MANILA, Philippines - Must we be presented with a doomsday scenario in order to wake up?
Last Tuesday evening, concerned citizens of the country gathered at Glorietta 4 Cinema 3 for a “green carpet” screening of the docu-drama-animation The Age of Stupid. Well, I missed the actual green carpet part of the event organized by the Global Campaign for Climate Action (GCCA), which is like the union of all green-minded groups like Greenpeace, WWF, Oxfam and the like—you get it, our Modern Day Association of Captain Planets.
I don’t think I missed anything on the green carpet because unlike glitzbiz red carpet premieres where only your sartorial sense and your “pose” matters, this movie screening was much more than that. The focus on the green carpet was not clothing but conscience, more than your “pose,” this one called for action.
Five minutes after the actual screening started, I realized that the premise of the film is of an old man (Oscar-nominated Pete Postlethwaite) living in the devastated world of 2055, watching “archive” footage from 2008 and asking “Why didn’t we stop climate change while we had the chance?” The footages are real and disturbing, interspersed with vintage shots of when man started his fixation to have more, and more, and more. It plotted people’s lives of destruction from Nigeria to New Orleans. Who’s to blame? Us.
The film has been prescibed as “of vital importance and essential viewing to anyone who cares about the survival of our planet.” We all should care, you know. We all grew up with the word “global warming” looming over our heads, but whereas before the word was just a concept, it is now very much a reality. The film presents all sides of the fence, even providing actual interviews with people who oppose acts that can help save the environment. In a way this film reminded me of a Borat — a Borat for environmentalists. It exposes the stupidity in all of us, and gives us that wake up call to change. Because amid all the gloom and doom, the movie shows us that there is hope, and that we can still save the world.
Whether-The-Weather-Be-Not-So-Nice
The Age of Stupid is directed by Franny Armstrong (McLibel), and produced by Lizzie Gillett and Oscar winner John Battsek (One Day in September).
“Our goal is to get this film in front of 250 million people, and hopefully create 25 million climate activists,” said Von Hernandez, executive director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia. “It might be an impossible goal, but we’d be stupid not to try.”
According to the Greenpeace peeps, the film will be available for distribution on DVD after Oct. 24. There will also be more green carpet screenings around the country and the world.
Why these efforts? Film screenings, rallies and peaceful demonstrations? Greenpeace and other organizations of the GCCA have been calling on leaders of industrialized countries to commit to 40 percent carbon emissions cuts from 1990 levels by 2020, and to put up an annual fund of at least US$140 billion for climate change adaptation, mitigation and forest protection for countries that are most vulnerable and least prepared (uh, that’s us, you know) to deal with the impacts of climate change. In The Philippine STAR headline the other day, President GMA appealed for “rich nations to fund RP rehab,” whereas on the other side of the environmental fence, us “lesser” countries (in terms of carbon emissions at least) are appealing for the giants (the US and China) to reduce theirs. Heavy words and vast numbers, but hard facts for us to be able to save Mother Earth.
The one-two punch of tropical storm Ondoy (Ketsana) and typhoon Pepeng (Parma) in Luzon has served to be a very grim reminder of the knockout effects of severe weather events, a direct consequence of climate change. Scientists are saying that the two events are merely a preview of things to come. The movie is part of the “Tiktok, tiktok” (or “tck, tck, tck” in some countries) global effort of GCCA organizations to get people around the world to persuade world leaders to attend the United Nations (UN) Summit on climate change in Copenhagen in December and make concrete commitments. Their decisions on global action will affect the world as we see it, as we live it, thus the pressure.
“The call is being intensified, especially with the recent UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) intercessional meeting in Bangkok last week not making any progress on commitments, despite the increasing incidence of severe weather events like Ondoy and Pepeng in the region,” explained Beng Reyes-Ong, my Greenpeace connector.
After the screening, I spotted a very preggy Tintin Bersola, who spreads around her climate change advocacies on her Twitter; Rhian Ramos, who took time out of her busy telenovela schedule to catch the film.
After seeing the film, Rhian is more eco-conscious. “I want to get an electric car so I can reduce emissions,” she told me on the green carpet. “I think everyone can do something, because even if things are a bit scary these days, it’s never too late,” Rhian said, hoping for more young people to actively participate.
Roy Alvarez, who has long been an environmentalist, said, “The simplest things you can do is to avoid garbage and consume only what you need. Segregate, recycle, reuse.”
But it was social chronicler Maurice Arcache who put it best. “I can only say three words. Don’t be stupid!”
