In 2012, the science magazine Nature published a study by more than 20 researchers from the top scientific institutions in the world predicting that humankind could disappear between 2040 and 2100. It also stated that this extinction could be avoided if we boldly changed our way of life.
Who will lead this revolution? Jeremy Rifkin points out that individuals in local communities will be called upon to take back power from governments and corporations and replace top-down policies with horizontal activism. Equally important, is what Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mohammad Yunus calls the rise of human imagination.
Environmental activist Cyril Dion and actress Melanie Laurent have picked up these two challenges as directors of this French environmental documentary that is bound to lift your heart and mind. It gives an inspirational look at can-do solutions already started in 10 countries.
The documentary begins with the predictions of Stanford biologist Elizabeth Hadly and Berkeley paleontologist Anthony Barnosky that the double whammy of rising temperatures and a growing global population could lead to human extinction. The rest of Tomorrow puts the accent on the positive with its varied and surprising examples of five different areas -- agriculture, energy, economics, democracy, and education -- where changes in the way we do things have been set in motion. Business as usual will only lead to widespread tragedy.
An exciting energy comes across in this wide-ranging documentary about the quests for a sustainable world. In Detroit, Michigan, residents are growing their own food through urban farming programs; in Copenhagen, nearly 70% of the energy consumed comes from non-fossil fuels; in San Francisco, 80% of their waste is recycled, re-used, or composted; in Todmorden, UK, free vegetable gardens are available to ordinary citizens via "The Incredible Edible Scheme" of two women; and in Kuttambakkan, India, a progressive mayor has introduced measures for a true form of participatory democracy.
This rousing documentary shows that activists around the world are working hard to make a difference and to create a chance for the youth of tomorrow to savor and enjoy some of the same pleasures that we have been graced with in our times.
Here is an indispensable introduction to fresh ideas and information aimed at changing the world and providing new perspectives on today's political, social, economic, and cultural issues. This documentary is bubbling over with practical solutions to today's problems.