Participants of this year’s Global Landscapes Forum will have noticed the excellent selection of short videos, shown around the main events. They were part of a special partner video competition, in which 14 videos were selected because of their high quality. Congratulations to the Landscapes for People, Food, and Nature and EcoAgriculture Partners for their winning video Integrated Landscape Management and SDGs, and to everyone else for their amazing work.
Our judges from the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the International Network for Bamboo&Rattan (INBAR) were pleased about the quality and the wide range of themes presented: from Mayan (Mexico) and Mau (Kenya) forests through greening initiatives to fire and haze in Indonesia.
Take a look at this selection of informative and well-filmed documentaries.
Integrated Landscape Management and SDGs
by EcoAgriculture Partners/Landscapes for People, Food and Nature
The United Nations’ adoption of Transforming Our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) with 169 targets, presents a monumental opportunity to the global community to improve human well-being and equality while also conserving Earth’s natural resources and the vital ecological functions on which we all depend. But agreement on the goals is just the first step.
To achieve the goals by 2030 will require a radically different paradigm of development than was applied to the Millennium Development Goals. A new approach that breaks down sectoral barriers, capitalizes on synergies in land uses and human development, and strengthens coordination and participation of a wide range of stakeholders is needed. Integrated landscape management (ILM) is that approach.
Mayan Forest in the Yucatan Peninsula
by The Nature Conservancy
This documentary film (Spanish with subtitles) from renowned filmmaker Varial* chronicles the impacts of climate change and deforestation on the indigenous communities who live in and around the Mayan Forest in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico and their efforts to both combat it and adapt to it. The film captures stirring images and interviews emotionally depicting the toll that changing rain patterns have had on the Mayans, forcing them to adapt their planting practices and, in some cases, migrate to cities. But the story is one of hope, as we see the communities taking action with their own hands on their own lands to implement improved productive practices that both reduce deforestation and improve resilience. They are proud leaders on the frontlines of climate change and they have a message to share with the audience: “I am Mayan and I care for my Mayan Forest. And you? What is your Mayan Forest?”
This film brings the voices of the Mayan communities of the Yucatan Peninsula to the COP in order to increase awareness about how climate change is affecting indigenous communities and what those communities are doing about it.
Branching out for a Green Economy
by UNEP (outside competition, older than 2 years)
This short animated film, narrated by actor/director/producer and Academy Award winner Sir David Attenborough, highlights the role forests can play in national development, a green economy and climate change. It also reviews the current situation and some transformative solutions.
Equipping Uganda for restoration: Radio and Apps for reforesting landscapes
by IUCN
In many African countries, radio is the most efficient and cost-effective method of spreading knowledge, especially among rural farmers and villagers. To reach these isolated communities, IUCN partnered with Farm Radio International in Uganda to produce a radio programme on forest landscape restoration.
On air throughout 2014, the interactive radio programme allowed farmers to understand the benefits, opportunities and challenges they might face in restoring degraded land, and helped them undertake forest landscape restoration interventions according to their needs. IUCN also worked with partners to produce similar results through mobile technologies, using a new app to help farmers and communities choose the right species of tree for their specific needs.
Land Degradation Neutral World
by UNEP/UNCCD
SDG 15: Life on Land. On 25 September 2015, 193 countries came together in New York to adopt the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs. SDG 15 calls for the protection, restoration and sustainable management of land-based ecosystems. In doing so target 15.3 specifically aims to achieve a Land Degradation Neutral World by the year 2030.
by CIFOR
In Burkina Faso, in West Africa, deforestation has reduced income and livelihoods. Simple steps have helped families deal with the loss of trees and brought their farms back to life. Green Treasure of the Sahel travels with one family as they go on a journey of discovery across the country to find out how they too can bring life back to their land.
by INBAR
This is a film about a landscape rehabilitation project in Allahabad started by INBAR and the India NGO Utthan in 1997, which Utthan continues to run and develop. Over 85, 000 ha of land have been rehabilitatd, and thousands of livelihoods redeveloped.
Forests: The Heart Of A Green Economy
by UNEP
Forests provide livelihoods for up to 1 billion people and contribute trillions of USD to the global economy through products and services. Yet in some regions, deforestation continues at an alarming rate. As REDD+ aims to address market, policy, and institutional failures that undervalue the climate change mitigation service provided by the forest ecosystem, while protecting the rights of those who rely on the forests, there are clear links between REDD+ objectives and green economy objectives, both of which call for a change in the business-as-usual economic development in order to slow the loss of natural capital. This short film feature examples from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Indonesia and Ecuador, highlighting the potential challenges and opportunities of including REDD+ in the transition to a green economy.
AC3 — Water, communities and climate change
by CATIE/EfD
Spanish with English subtitles
Kenya’s Mau Forest – More Than Trees
by UNEP
Forests are one of the most valuable assets on earth.– but they are under threat as never before. This short film features people who depend on the Mau Forest in Kenya – one of the country’s most important water towers – and demonstrates how people and forests can be intimately linked.
Gender Inclusive Research: Why and How
by CIAT
3 reasons why agricultural research should be gender inclusive, and 3 ways to do it.
6-minute animation created by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) in collaboration with ICESI University (Colombia).
Drylands: The Opportunities You Never Imagined
by CIAT
Discover the opportunities that drylands hold to help tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges in this short animation created by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the CGIAR Research Program on Dryland Systems.
Where there’s smoke, there’s toxic gas: Inside Indonesia’s fire and haze
by CIFOR
Kariba REDD+ Forest protection, Zimbabwe
by South Pole Group
A new course for the Congo: Forests, climate change and education
by CIFOR
The vast, rich tropical forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo are essential both for local people and for the global climate, and managing them sustainably is important for the country’s future. This video explores the threats to the forest and shows how solutions are being forged – in the classroom.
