Environmental film festival at ECC, MCC
The largest environmental film festival in North America is coming to McHenry and Kane counties.
Join Friends of the Fox River as they host the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival Tour at McHenry County College from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday and Elgin Community College from 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday. Different films will be featured at each venue; consider attending both.
The Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival Tour brings together award-winning environmental films in the spirit of inspiration and education. The films leave people feeling inspired and motivated to go out and make a difference in their communities and around the world.
Whether it is the struggle for environmental justice, information on renewable energy, or an educational tale about an endangered species, the films bring awareness to the natural world around us and our role in that delicate balance.
This will be the only stop for the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival in the Chicago area. In partnership with tour sponsor Patagonia, Friends of the Fox River will use the tour as a community outreach tool to raise awareness of both local and global issues.
This festival is a natural extension of its work to inspire people to act on behalf of the watershed. Its mission is to preserve, restore and protect the Fox River watershed's natural resources by connecting people with nature through education, research, restoration and advocacy. In 2007, it mobilized hundreds of community members to care for the watershed through the planting of water willows to stabilize stream banks, collected trash by the tons along shorelines, and adult and student citizen scientists monitored the water quality to provide data for decision makers to better protect our watershed.
On Thursday, doors open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 6:10 p.m. at McHenry County College Conference Center, 8900 Route 14, Crystal Lake.
On Saturday, doors open at 2 p.m. with the show starting at 2:05 p.m. at the Advanced Technology Center auditorium, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin.
Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door. For details, visit www.friendsofthefox.org.
"The Global Warming": The Slow Global Warming group of Elgin will host a special screening of the 2006 documentary "The Great Warming" at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Epworth United Methodist Church, Highland Avenue and Randall Road in Elgin. Come at 5:30 p.m. to this free evening and enjoy a home-cooked meal by church members.
In addition, there will be a second showing of the film at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, hosted by the Zion Green Team, at Zion Lutheran Church, 330 Griswold St., one block west of State Street in Elgin.
There is no admission fee; free compact florescent light bulb, compliments of the City of Elgin, will be available. There will be handouts of the "Green Sheet" along with other informational handouts.
Narrated by Alanis Morissette and Keanu Reeves, the film sweeps around the world to reveal howa changing climate is affecting mankind.
"The Great Warming" examines evidence that human activities are provoking an unprecedented era of atmospheric warming and climatic events: more drought, wildfires and flooding, polar melting, more powerful storms and more variable weather. "The Great Warming" also showcases initiatives aimed at reversing the trend toward permanent damage to our planet, as well as scenes documenting the emerging voice of America's faith community urging action on climate change.
"The Great Warming" has been endorsed by the National Council of Churches, Evangelical Environmental Network and the Coalition on Environment and Jewish Life.
The showing of the film will start at 6:45 p.m. Discussion and refreshments will follow the movie. For information, call (847) 741-7375 or e-mail slowglobalwarming@gmail. com.
Green Film Festival: A Green Film Festival in Woodstock will be screened from 1 to 10 p.m. Sunday at the Stage Left Cafe, next to the Woodstock Opera House. Admission is free. The festival is being presented by the Green Sanctuary Committee of the Congregational Unitarian Church. Admission is free. Beverages and snacks will be available.
Films include the feature documentaries "Who Killed the Electric Car," Robert Kennedy Jr.'s "Who Owns Nature," and "The Real Dirt on Farmer John."
In addition, a number of short films will be shown including "The Story of Stuff," "Owls," "Kilowatt Ours," "Integrated and Sustainable Home Building in a Midwestern Climate," "Future Mighty Oaks of McHenry County," and "The True Cost of Food."
There will be time for discussion of the films as well.
The schedule will be: "Who Killed the Electric Car" at 1:15 p.m.; short films, "The Story of Stuff," "Owls" and "Kilowatt Ours" from 3 to 4:10 p.m.; Robert Kennedy Jr.'s "Who Owns Nature" at 4:25 p.m.; short films, "Integrated and Sustainable Home Building for a Midwestern Climate," "Future Mighty Oaks of McHenry County," and "The True Cost of Food" from 5:40 to 7 p.m. and "The Real Dirt on Farmer John" at 7:30 p.m. For details, call the Congregational Unitarian Church at (815) 338-0731 or visit www.cucw.org.