Please join us for this special screening followed by a discussion with
DANIEL SHEPARD
United Nations Information Officer, Dept. of Public Information
6:30 - 7:00 p.m. | Registration and Cash Bar
Screening begins promptly at 7:00 p.m.
The Tribeca Grand Hotel
2 Avenue of the Americas (between White and Walker Streets)
New York, NY
SPECIAL ADMISSION
UNA Members: $10
UNA Student Members: FREE
Guests and Non-Members: $15
We are pleased to present a special screening of CLIMATE REFUGEES, an important documentary which has been acclaimed at many international film festivals this past year, and a film which Sundance Film Festival founder Robert Redford said "can be an agent for social change — that's really exciting to me."
The United Nations estimates that there are currently about 25 million "climate refugees," people who have had to move from their homeland because of lack of natural resources induced by environmental disasters. Such disasters result from incremental and rapid ecological change, resulting in increased droughts, desertification, sea level rise, and the more frequent occurrence of extreme weather events such as hurricanes, cyclones, fires, mass flooding and tornadoes. All this is causing mass global migration and border conflicts. The number is greater than both political and religious refugees in the world. Most are in poor, environmentally vulnerable areas, and the number is expected to grow in the next decade by tens of millions.
For CLIMATE REFUGEES, award-winning filmmaker Michael Nash and his film crew spent nearly three years around the world documenting the plight of the people who have been forced to migrate, and giving a haunting picture of the future. They also talked to scientists, aids groups and politicians from both spectrums of the aisle, including Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga.
This film is about what happens when an over-populated world lacking in resources and a changing climate collide with each other — a historical intersection that many are calling the greatest challenge mankind will ever face. If "An Inconvenient Truth" was concerned with the causes of climate change, this film is about the effects of climate change on our civilization.
Guest Speaker
DAN SHEPARD
Dan Shepard is the point person on sustainability issues for the UN Department of Public Information. Climate change, biodiversity loss, food security, livable cities and water — all issues that involve economics, quality of life, and the environment — are among these issues that he deals with. From Bali through the Cancun Climate Conference, he has worked to promote the UN's efforts to address climate change and he has coordinated a UN interagency group that works on climate-related communications issues. At present, he is also working to promote the work of the UN biodiversity, desertification, the protection of the world's oceans and forests, and in ensuring the success of the Rio +20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development.
In addition to his work on sustainability issues, Dan has also worked, in his ten years with DPI, on a range of topics ranging from the adoption of the Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to the problem of overfishing. He has also served as editor of the United Nations Development Programme magazine, CHOICES, and also, for UNDP, worked on advocacy issues that included small arms and the rebuilding effort after the 2004 tsunami.
Critical Responses
"CLIMATE REFUGEES is an agent for social change." Robert Redford
"...[Nash] gets to the root of the problem: the impacts of climate change can't be isolated from issues of social inequity, resource exploitation, armed conflict, political expediency or any of dozens of other contributing factors." Hollywood Reporter
"A resounding wake-up call for every human being to go green immediately. It is a must-see film that puts the human soul in the science of climate change." Sherri Quinn, NPR
"CLIMATE REFUGEES is beautifully filmed... highly instructional... and easily understood... Michael Nash and producer Justin Hogan have created a cautionary tale with the possibility of a happy ending. A film which has been well received in Copenhagen at the International Climate Change Summit, and should be seen by every citizen of every country." Rich Hancock, DIFF Review
"With leading reserchers and high profile political figures, CLIMATE REFUGEES presents a swell of compelling opinion about the challenges such change puts on the global populations." Peter Debruge, Variety
"The most important documentary made in the last 30 years." Richard Schiff, Greenwich Village Gazette
"As filmmaker Michael Nash points out... the problems documented in this new film don't require political allegiance or a particular view on the cause of climate change... it threatens the security of all nations. In this, all parties and wings can unite in recognizing the importance of understanding the scope of the issue, predicting its reach (both numerically and geographically), and estimating its impact on our own lives. This is what Michael Nash has done for us." Future in Review
"It's films like CLIMATE REFUGEES and An Inconvenient Truth that truly are the wind that will fill the sails to America signing a green energy bill." Sen. Barbara Boxer
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UNA-NYC is grateful for the generosity of the Tribeca Grand Hotel, for allowing our organization the consistent booking of their state of the art screening room for our Film Talk series.
Nearest subway stations to access the Tribeca Grand Hotel area:
Canal Street station: A, E, C trains
Franklin Street station: No. 1 train
Also close, but requires a little walk:
Canal Street Station station: N, Q, R, W trains
View the Tribeca Grand Hotel neighborhood map and more directions