After the film viewers can discuss the film and what local residents can do to protect the environment.
With 2017 underway, The Mt. Laurel Green Team isn’t wasting any time providing residents another way to learn how they can help the environment.
On Thursday, Jan. 12, the Mt. Laurel Green Team will be hosting a film screening and discussion at the Mt. Laurel Library for the 2015 documentary “Racing Extinction.”
Created by the Oceanic Preservation Society, “Racing Extinction” showcases activists and artists as they join forces to examine the leading causes of extinction around the world.
With notable appearances in the film from people such as Tesla Motors founder Elon Musk, National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore, primatologist Jane Goodall and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Elizabeth Kolbert, the film explores the idea that the spread of Homo sapiens is leading the planet’s greatest mass extinction since the end of the Cretaceous period 66 million years ago.
From greenhouse gas emissions to illegal wildlife poaching to overfishing of species, throughout the film, viewers can learn about what effect humans have in causing the extinction of animals across the world, and they can learn how communities and individuals can work together to preserve the environment and its creatures.
Once the screening has concluded, Mt. Laurel Green Team member Marty Levin will lead a discussion about the film and how those in Mt. Laurel can work to protect the environment.
“The quality of the filmmaking is just excellent, and it’s a very moving story about some of the environmental conversations people have had regarding changes to the oceans, dietary issues, energy concerns, environmental issues related to carbon emissions and more,” Levin said.
Levin said a prior screening of the film he attended was scheduled to have a brief discussion afterward, but the movie and its themes kept the group speaking for nearly and hour and a half.
Just one story in the film Levin described was that of the central Indonesian village of Lamakera, which was known for the harvesting of their local manta ray population.
In the film, viewers can see how the village transformed its way of life from harvesting and driving the mantas toward extinction, to instead becoming a tourist economy where visitors flock to the village to pay for tours to see the mantas in their natural habitat.
“There are steps that we can take as individuals and as a community to make a difference,” Levin said.
Levin said he’ll also be providing handouts so residents can learn more about the film and upcoming screenings of other environmental features.
“People who are committed to making a change can actually make a difference,” Levin said. “It just takes the right person with the right tools being committed to it.”
The “Racing Extinction” film and discussion is scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 12, at the Mt. Laurel Library, 100 Walt Whitman Ave. The event is open to all residents who wish to attend.
For those with questions or who would like more information about the event, contact Levin at (856) 266–7331 or contact the Mt. Laurel Library at (856) 234–7319.
The Mt. Laurel Green Team provides locals with education for reaching sustainability goals. To learn more about the Mt. Laurel Green Team, visit http://mountlaurel.com/community-services/the-green-team.
