David Brower Center and the San Francisco Green Film Festival present Racing to Zero
Thursday, August 6, 7:00pm
David Brower Center, Berkeley, California
Tickets: $10 Advance / $12 Door // $5 Students/Teachers
$25 Earth Island Institute Reception and Reserved Seating
DISCUSSION WITH:
- Christopher Beaver, director
- Diana Fuller, producer
- Maureen Gosling, editor
- Robert Haley, Zero Waste Manager, SF Department of the Environment
- James Kao, CEO/President/Founder, Green Citizen
Racing to Zero examines today’s cultural garbage practices in terms of consumption, preparation, use, and production. Only one-third of the waste in the United Stated is recycled or composted. Why? Industry, through its practice of planned obsolescence, plays a major role; our lives are almost totally dependent on unrecyclable petroleum products, a trend that has broad impacts on our natural resources, climate, and future.
In response, some cities in California have recognized the imminent threat of doing nothing, and are radically reducing the amount of refuse they send to landfills, with the eventual goal of reaching zero waste in the foreseeable future.
Racing to Zero follows the collective zero waste efforts of San Francisco, which is increasing recycling, creative repurposing, and composting, as well as changing patterns of production and consumption. In fact, San Francisco leads the nation by keeping 78% of its garbage out of landfills.
Our leading characters guide us through the various aspects of the story: Robert Haley, Zero Waste Manager for San Francisco’s Department of the Environment; William Rathje, archaeologist, anthropologist, scholar and inventor of the science of Garbology; Robert Shaffer, an agronomist and farmer, champions the values of compost. In their travels around the countryside and conversations with other scholars and experts, they tell the story of garbage, its past, present, and future.
Racing to Zero is part of the David Brower Center's Reel to Real documentary film series.
Film screening will be followed by a conversation with the film's producer, Diana Fuller, director, Christopher Beaver, and editor, Maureen Gosling, as well James Kao, Executive Director of Green Citizen.
Join the Racing to Zero filmmakers, post-film panelists, and the Earth Island community at a special pre-film reception from 6-7 pm. Reception includes hearty appetizers, wine/beer and reserved seating for the 7 pm film screening.
About Reel to Real
The Brower Center further amplifies the power of art for social change through its new film program Reel to Real. Throughout the year, the Brower Center will present documentaries with critical, current insights into how we can create a more just and sustainable future. Films will address pressing issues that include climate change, social justice, conservation, and environmental education, as well as the intersections among them. Following each film, the Brower Center and its partners will provide a range of tools and resources for audiences to take real action beyond the reel.