It’s time to look back and celebrate all the things we’ve accomplished together this year. Here’s 2021 by the numbers.
4,046 attendees at 26 film watch parties
At each of the virtual events during the main Fest Season in March and during Earth Week in April, we learned about the climate crisis, were presented with more than 250 action ideas, and pledged to take action.
Each year, the One Earth Young Filmmakers Contest receives amazing short film entries from all across the U.S. The submissions are rolling in ahead of the Jan. 5 deadline, and we are preparing to evaluate them. In 2022, we are excited to announce a new prize level—“The Environmental Activism Prize”—to elevate both the young filmmakers and the organizations on the frontlines of climate change activism.
It’s Our Future, the youth-led sustainability initiative in Oak Park-River Forest, got off to a stellar start after winning the Big Idea Contest in March 2019. Among the notable accomplishments in its first five months: an op-ed published in the Wednesday Journal (October); participation in the Climate Summit in Madrid (December); a presentation on the PlanItGreen Report Card to community leaders (December), and hosting the well-attended “Climate Live” event at L!VE Café and Creative Space (January).
West Cook Wild Ones launches its 2020 Garden for Nature program by announcing grants totaling more than $4,500 to 14 nonprofit and public organizations in the Chicago area.
Garden for Nature funds projects mainly in western Cook County that engage young people in planting native gardens and natural landscapes to make their communities healthier and more beautiful.
Jonathan Moeller returns to teach the Young Filmmakers Workshops in River Forest for grades 6 to 8 on Sunday, Dec. 1, and for grades 3 to 5 on Sunday, Dec. 8. Both workshops will take place from 1 to 4:30 p.m. at the River Forest Depot, 401 Thatcher Ave. Register here: https://www.oneearthfilmfest.org/workshops
Q: Why do you think it's important for kids to learn how to make films?
A: Film and video is a medium that will not disappear anytime soon. Video, especially through the web and social media, has become a cornerstone for how we communicate as a society.
This summer a new youth leadership program gave a cohort of Chicago teens a safe and nurturing environment to learn lessons that enriched their lives, as well as the neighborhood where they live. During July, teens in the “I Can Fly” Youth Leadership Program focused on the richness of the soil, not the economic poverty around them; the sweet fruits of labor, not the bitterness of systemic discrimination.
Green Community Connections was pleased to partner with so many incredible partners for its inaugural I Can Fly Youth Leadership Program this summer. Learn about I Can Fly! See photos from the program, review the program backgrounder, and meet the wonderful partners and supporters who made it all possible.
Middle and elementary school students can learn about video, lighting, audio and editing at two Young Filmmakers Workshops from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays, Dec. 6 (grades 6 to 8) and Dec. 13 (grades 3 to 5). Two Chicago-area film industry professionals, director Andrew Freer and editor Lucy Coria, will lead the workshops. They have planned a “hands-on, learning by doing” experience for participants.
