No red carpets for us environment-lovers, stupid!
The typical Hollywood movie premiere is a scenario that we’re all pretty familiar with: celebrities pull up to the red carpet in large, gas-guzzling cars (what would happen if Brad Pitt and George Clooney carpooled in a Smart Car for a change?), pose for the photographers, and then proceed to watch their film. And the film is usually an action movie with high speed car chase scenes, or a gushy romance, or a goofy comedy.
A couple of weeks ago, the League of Independent Activists (IndyACT) and its partners – the Green Party of Lebanon, the British Embassy in Lebanon, and the American Lebanese Chamber of Commerce – challenged this typical movie premiere movie event with a “Green Carpet” premiere screening for the environmental film, “The Age of Stupid.”
Attended by high profile celebrities who biked up to the green carpet, such as Ragheb Alameh (the Lebanese singer and composer shown above) and the British Ambassador to Lebanon, the movie screening took place on October 24th in Beirut – just two months before the Copenhagen summit on climate change.
Wael Hmaidan, the Head of the IndyACT Climate Campaign, has said that “not one Arab government has adopted the 350 target so far. Actually none of the Arab governments has adopted formally any global CO2 concentration target, making us the weakest region in the climate negotiations.” Events such as the “Green Carpet” premiere have been an attempt to strengthen the position of Middle Eastern countries in the upcoming international summit.
October 24th was a day observed by climate change activists worldwide. Many small protests took place all over the Middle East as part of the 350.org campaign, including several in Beirut.
“The Age of Stupid” has also been an important part of many climate change protest campaigns. It was recently screened in Tel Aviv as part of a “Solar Nights” series of three environmental films screened with solar power.
Read more about other Middle Eastern climate change protests and discussions::
The World’s Poorest Protest Saudi Arabia’s Obstructionist Role in Climate Change Negotiations
Activists in Lebanon Create Human Chain to Protect Iconic Cedars from Catastrophic Climate Change
Israeli Presidential Conference Includes Environmental Content This Week
Author: Karen Chernick
Much to the disappointment of her Moroccan grandmother, Karen became a vegetarian at the age of seven because of a heartfelt respect for other forms of life. She also began her journey to understand her surroundings and her impact on the environment. She even starting an elementary school Ecology Club and an environmental newsletter in the 3rd grade. (The proceeds of the newsletter went to non-profit environmental organizations, of course.) She now studies in New York. Karen can be reached at karen (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
I’m emailing from the Sheffield Documentary Festival in the UK, where I’ve just been part of a 2 hour masterclass with Franny & Lizzie, producers of ‘AOS’, bought a copy from them……and been deeply inspired as both a filmmaker, and as someone who cares about the planet. This is guerilla citizen activism at its best!