Despite an apparent record-breaking number of submissions to film festivals this year, not to mention unprecedented disruptions in scheduling, it turned out to be a great year for The Seeds of Vandana Shiva. We won a Best Documentary Award, an Audience Award, and A Jury Special Mention, and we’re receiving a stream of invitations for 2022.
More important was the heartfelt feedback from audiences, from whom we mostly heard: Why have we never heard of this amazing woman’s life story before? Why do we not know about the crisis in food systems? And, what can we do?
To ignite interest in the issues and move viewers towards action is what most documentaries hope to achieve. As filmmakers, our goal is to entertain, to inspire, and to educate but also, ultimately, to move the needle for change. So, in response to the question, “What can we do?”, we generally say, “Actually, quite a lot”. None of it is impossible or even that difficult, especially as the consequences of not doing anything are so horribly dire. Think no further than the climate catastrophes of 2021. Or the COVID pandemic, which experts agree has its roots in human disruption of planetary ecosystems
Here are our commitments for 2022:
• Whenever and wherever possible, buy local, organic, and fair-traded food
• Support local organic farmers and food producers
• Grow food and/or help others to grow food
• Reduce waste; compost
• Save and share seeds, start a community seed library
• Support organizations working in the regenerative food movement
• Share awareness of the issues; encourage others towards ecological food
• Advocate for ecological food and farming to elected officials
• Vote for the climate, the environment, and with our fork!
We understand that people have different life circumstances, and we know that you will do what you can. We’d love to hear your own ideas.
You could also donate to our impact campaign. For those who donated before, please know that you helped us to finish the film, prepare it for film festivals, redo our website, produce assets for community screenings, manage ongoing digital services, and pay our social media manager who in 2021 grew our following to a dedicated 50 thousand. We’re extremely grateful and would not be here without you.
Now we’re looking to increase our outreach to underfunded community organizations and to distribute the film and work of Vandana Shiva to schools and universities. In the new year, we’ll be fundraising for this, but you could jumpstart our efforts with a tax-deductible donation today.
Let’s continue together.
Watch Vandana Shiva’s interview with Indira Naidoo at the Sydney Film Festival