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What do kids think about the growing problem of plastic pollution? Our students explore young perspectives on plastic pollution causes, impacts and solutions through interviews with Maui kids ages five through ten. Past Presentation

California’s attorney general has announced a first-of-its kind investigation into the fossil fuel and petrochemical industries for their alleged role in causing and exacerbating a global crisis in plastic waste pollution. Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said Thursday that his office has subpoenaed Exxon Mobil Corp. seeking information related to the company’s “historic and ongoing efforts” to minimize the public’s understanding of the harmful consequences of plastic.

It is estimated that more than eight million tonnes of plastic enter the world's oceans each year. The debris poses a number of dangers to marine ecosystems - such as entangling or being ingested by sea creatures. The dangers go well beyond sea creatures - plastic in the oceans threatens our very existence! -tr

Recent research has shown that small increases in air pollution are linked to significant rises in depression and anxiety. It has also linked dirty air to increased suicides and indicated that growing up in polluted places increases the risk of mental disorders. Other research has found that air pollution causes a “huge” reduction in intelligence and is linked to dementia. A global review in 2019 concluded that air pollution may be damaging every organ in the human body.

The researchers said the findings were likely to apply to most cities in developed nations, and cutting air pollution could benefit millions of people. “Air pollution is modifiable, and on a big scale as well, reducing population-level exposure,” said Joanne Newbury, of the University of Bristol, part of the research team. “We know there are interventions that can be used, such as expanding low-emission zones. Mental health interventions at the individual level are actually quite difficult.”

“What humans have been doing for decades now is what I call a ‘plastification’ of the landscape and oceans. The study confirms the global-scale nature of microplastic transport in the atmosphere...”

Researchers at the University of Montana are exploring the role of nanoparticles, commonly found in inner cities encumbered with pollution, in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimers. Causality has not been proven, but researchers hypothesize that these nanoparticles play a large role in brain diseases.

The study concludes that chemical pollution has crossed a “planetary boundary”, the point at which human-made changes to the Earth push it outside the stable environment of the last 10,000 years.

Excessive outdoor lighting is deadly to animals and takes a toll on human health and wellbeing, too. But when it comes to large-scale environmental problems, this one may be a relatively easy fix. It’s not easy to make street lights exciting, but Kelly Beatty is trying. Holding court over Zoom on a spring evening in 2021, he warns citizens of Nantucket island in Massachusetts that the decisions they’ll soon make about their lights are choices they’re “going to have to live with for a long time.”

Plastics are of particularly high concern, they said, along with 350,000 synthetic chemicals including pesticides, industrial compounds and antibiotics. Plastic pollution is now found from the summit of Mount Everest to the deepest oceans, and some toxic chemicals, such as PCBs, are long-lasting and widespread.

“Even one day of breathing in polluted air is dangerous for our health,” wrote Jessie Kochaver, Campaign Associate with Environment Oregon Research & Policy Center

In fighting against rail yard pollution, local activists had to take on BNSF, a company owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. “Now it’s no longer just Warren Buffett, it’s Jeff Bezos and Amazon,” said Dolan. “And we’re paying their cost of doing business.”

wood-burning stoves in urban areas are responsible for almost half of people’s exposure to the cancer-causing chemicalsfound in air pollution particles. Even wood-burning stoves meeting the new “ecodesign” standard still emit 750 times more tiny particles than a modern HGV truck, another study found, while wood burners also triple the level of harmful pollution inside homes and should be sold with a health warning, according to scientists.

“A clear definition of who is overburdened by pollution paves the way for the state to swiftly direct resources and take other action to combat said pollution.”

Tyres produce more than 1tn ultrafine particles for each kilometre driven, meaning particles smaller than 23 nanometres. These are also emitted from exhausts and are of special concern to health, as their size means they can enter organs via the bloodstream. Particles below 23nm are hard to measure and are not currently regulated in either the EU or US.

New attention is being paid to these products because of the cumulative impact of the emissions from our homes and the way they react together to form harmful air pollution. Control of air pollution that forms from personal care products will not be easy. The first step will be to make manufactures responsible for the pollution from the products they sell.

Two brothers and a friend set sail from Mexico with a dream to circumnavigate the world and surf. In their 3-year 40,000-nautical mile journey crossing all the major oceans of the world and visiting some 40 countries, they discover endemic plastic pollution on ”pristine” beaches. The films shows how the local and global effects of the ocean’s pollution are intertwined and explores solutions. Past Presentation

Rivers and creeks are like arteries that flow to our heart, the ocean. Plastic pollution is like cholesterol. In Central America and Southeast Asia groups are helping to stop the flow of plastic pollution to prevent impacts further downstream or on the sea and along our coastlines and reefs. Use the Global Alert app/platform to inspire cleanups and long-term solutions. Past Presentation

Mustafa Sari, a professor at the Maritime Faculty of Bandirma Onyedi Eylul University, blamed three triggers for causing the phytoplankton to secrete an excess of the slimy substance beginning this fall: the surface temperature of the Sea of Marmara, which has been steadily warming over two decades and is 2.5 degrees Celsius higher than the 40-year average; excess phosphorus and nitrogen from pollution; and the natural stability of the Marmara, which is an inland sea.

“... this invention could pave the way for sustainably lowering plastic pollution levels in the long run by simply using something found in nature.”

“On the one hand, it’s: ‘Oh, my goodness, this is terrible.’ But on the other hand, it points to something people can actually do to reduce this risk without too much effort. You basically stop burning wood. That’s the bottom line.”Research published in the last year has shown wood burning in homes is the single biggest source of small particle air pollution in the UK, producing three times more than road traffic, despite just 8% of the population using wood burners.

How will organic farming be in future? Farmer Mechtenbach tries to use new nanotechnology to defend the health of his highland cattle against growing pollution. Past Presentation

Featuring interviews with local experts, this short film documents a study of marine plastics being conducted in remote areas of Maui's northeast coast, and what it may tell us about the sources of plastic pollution, and potential solutions Past Presentation

Catriona Armour's body art and a special appearance by Dana Lyons of "Cows with Guns" propel the musical narrative about noise pollution in, around, and above the Salish Sea of Washington State and British Columbia. Past Presentation

Younes is the survivor of a diving team in the Iran-Iraq war who lives beside the Persian gulf. He desires to set a status under the gulf as a memorial to those friends who were murdered in the Persian gulf. Meanwhile he faces the water pollution of oil companies. Past Presentation

"Again, Together" is a film created in partnership with Ronald L. Jones, bringing stories from communities across Houston that have been impacted by environmental racism — namely redlining, segregation, underinvestment, exposure to pollution, gentrification, inequitable disaster recovery resources and freeway development. Now Playing

The streams near the trail pass through wetlands, which play a vital role in filtering out pollution from the water. Despite the sanitary start, the creek collects pollutants as it leaves the wetlands and flows further into the city. Runoff carrying chemicals, animal waste, and even trash seep into the creek as it travels, and these pollutants eventually end up in the aquifer, which Gainesville relies on for its drinking water.

Plastic is choking our planet, don’t dwell on it, let’s act. Embark on an odyssey as two Aussies and a bunch of eco guardians ride bicycles from Hanoi to Bangkok meeting proactive locals tackling plastic pollution. Our foe is strong, lightweight, greater in numbers and cheap, but we will prevail! Past Presentation

Owsia (Darkened Water) tells the story of the aqueduct of Iranian city Yazd that has supplied water for hundreds of years. Now, the 2500 year old structure rots due to bureaucracy and corruption. Wastewater pollution is poisoning the pure and clean water that ran through the aqueduct during 84 kms of current. Past Presentation

Instead, a growing body of research has shown growing rates of human infertility due to biological reasons including 74,000 yearly cases of testicular cancer, insufficient sperm and egg quality, premature puberty in young women, and an increase in the number of congenital malformations in male infant genitalia.

When it comes to plastitar, its formation is simple: as residue from oil spills in the ocean evaporates and weathers, it washes ashore as tar balls that cling to the rocky shores of the Canary Islands. “It acts like Play-Doh,” Hernández Borges said. “And when waves carrying microplastics or any other kind of marine debris crash on to the rocks, this debris sticks to the tar.”

SACRAMENTO, CA – In response to increasing concern about pervasive and persistent pollution caused by microplastics, the California Ocean Protection Council yesterday approved the first comprehensive microplastics strategy in the nation. This leading-edge Statewide Microplastics Strategy identifies early actions and research priorities to reduce microplastic pollution in California’s marine environment. Worldwide, an estimated 11 million metric tons of plastic enter the ocean each year. Without any intervention, this amount is anticipated to triple by 2040. Over time, plastics break down in aquatic environments into pieces of ever-decreasing size, with those less than 5 mm in size known as “microplastics,” which are easily ingested by ocean life, causing harm such as tissue inflammation, impaired growth, developmental abnormalities and reproductive complications.

A documentary project that follows a young Greenlandic woman (Pipaluk Knudsen-Ostermann) on her journey all around the world to find the local causes of the contamination that is quietly poisoning her people. In three different continents she meets the people behind the sources of pollution and discovers the heartbreaking dilemmas that lie at the heart of it. Past Presentation

The story of 56 fifth graders in Brooklyn who are living on the frontline of the climate crisis, whose actions on plastic pollution morph into extraordinary leadership and scalable victories. With stop-motion animation, heartfelt kid commentary, and interviews of experts and renowned scientists who are engaged in the most cutting edge research on the harmful effects of microplastics, this alarming, yet charming narrative conveys an urgent message – Use less plastic! Past Presentation

The story of Dr. Riki Ott, a whistleblower who predicted the Exxon Valdez oil spill hours before it happened. A toxicologist, author, and activist, Ott helped organize Gulf coast communities after the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster. She is also helping to spearhead a campaign along with Ultimate Civics to introduce a Constitutional amendment to end corporate personhood. Other citizens have been following Ott’s example in efforts to curb oil pollution of America's lands, rivers, and coastal waters. Past Presentation

The nuclear accident at Fukushima was pointed out as "pollution" by environmental historians and despite nearly a decade having passed since the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami disaster, the after-effects are still being felt by people from the region. As people grasp at possible ways to recover and move forward, IWASAKI Takamasa, the director of this film, uses the documentary format to look at the past to find ways to the future. Past Presentation

With colorful animation depicting the history of straws and segments narrated by Oscar winner, Tim Robbins, we learn about problems caused by plastic pollution and how to be part of the solution. Each day in the U.S., over 500,000,000 straws are used once and tossed. The vast majority aren't recycled and end up in landfills, litter streets, or add to an estimated 8.5 metric tons of debris in oceans annually. Ocean Conservancy ranks plastic straws as the fifth most frequent item found on beaches. Past Presentation

A searing expose uncovering the ugly truth behind the global plastic pollution crisis. Striking footage shot over three continents illustrates the ongoing catastrophe: fields full of garbage, veritable mountains of trash; rivers and seas clogged with waste; and skies choked with poisons from plastic production and recycling processes with no end in sight. Original animations, interviews with experts and activists, and never-before-filmed scenes reveal the disastrous consequences of the plastic flood around the world – and the global movement rising up in response. Now Playing

Kalpataru: (A wish-fulfilling, divine tree in Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.) The story highlights the importance of environment conservation. An ordinary laborer loses his young adult son. Doctors attribute his son's untimely death to medical conditions exacerbated by pollution. The man connects the importance of good health to clean, pure air and takes it upon himself to plant trees in hopes of saving others from the same fate his son suffered. Witness a determined man's decades-long journey, fraught with obstacles, drama, and hope for a better future. Past Presentation

Plastic pollution has been found from the summit of Mount Everest to the depths of the oceans. People are known to inadvertently eat and breathe microplastics and another recent study found that the particles cause damage to human cells. A study last year found that airborne microplastics are “spiraling around the globe”.

A review of 250 wood-burning stove certifications found unexplained data omissions and atypical lab practices.

"It is undeniably horrific that more than 2.8 million people have died of Covid-19 in the past 15 months. In roughly the same period, however, more than three times as many likely died of air pollution. This should disturb us for two reasons. One is the sheer number of air pollution deaths – 8.7 million a year, according to a recent study – and another is how invisible those deaths are, how accepted, how unquestioned."

This is all because of toxic smog across much of northern India. It happens every winter as industrial and vehicular emissions mix with smoke from crop-burning after the harvest.

California aims to sharply limit the spiraling scourge of microplastics in the ocean, while urging more study of this threat to fish, marine mammals and potentially to humans, under a plan a state panel approved Wednesday. The Ocean Protection Council voted to make California the first state to adopt a comprehensive plan to rein in the pollution, recommending everything from banning plastic-laden cigarette filters and polystyrene drinking cups to the construction of more green zones to filter plastics from stormwater before it spills into the sea.

As the Little Conemaugh River winds through the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania, it forms the backbone of a region with a legacy of industrial might. And like a scribe, the river carries the weight of that history - mile after mile devoid of life, poisoned by toxic pollution from countless abandoned coal mines. Generations of residents and neighbors have turned their back on the river, believing the damage to be irreversible and scolding their children for playing in its orange waters. But a decade-long effort from a coalition of local groups has begun to reveal a different future for the Little Conemaugh and for other rivers in Pennsylvania and beyond that were written off as a casualty of the coal industry. A River Reborn tells the story of the rebirth of the Little Conemaugh, and what it says about our ability to fix what might have been lost forever. Now Playing

But just as we humans have littered the Earth with our rubbish and the seas with our runoff, we've also poisoned the planet with our ruckus. And while noise is often treated more as a fist-shaking nuisance than a global health risk, it turns it isn't just annoying, it's actually killing us. "When we look at the healthiest ecosystems that exist today on our planet, we're finding they're also the quietest places," Hempton said. "They are the places taking carbon out of the environment, producing oxygen for us to breathe and where endangered species aren't endangered." When Hempton says that by saving quiet, you wind up saving everything else, this is exactly what he means – healthy soundscapes sustain healthy environments, and if we were to start treating noise as the soundtrack of climate change and noise pollution as pollution, it would have resounding effects on every living thing, including ourselves.

"The Story of Lumshnong" by Aarti Srivastava highlights ‘mindless’ limestone mining by cement companies. Lumshnong is a village situated in the Jaintia Hills district of Meghalaya, India, which is rich in reserves of limestone. These rich reserves of limestone have attracted cement companies to set up their plants in the village, thus creating a hazardous environment for the local population. The documentary talks about “unthinkable stupidity of the cement companies”. There are as many as eight cement plants in a radius of just five kilometres in Lumshnong village. Limestone mining, as claimed in the documentary, has turned the Lumshnong village into a “dusty, waterless and barren” piece of land. “Studies revealed that loss of forest cover, pollution of water, soil and air, depletion of natural flora and fauna, reduction in biodiversity, erosion of soil, and degradation of agriculture land are some are some of the hazards of limestone mining,” the makers of the documentary stated. They added: “The hazards will not just be limited to the areas around the mines and cement factories but will spill to other regions if environmental checks are not put in place. It will also affect the lives of the people who live around the area.” The visuals of cement plants in the foreground, while the vegetations begins to look grey, and locals pointing at the shortcomings of limestone mining paint a sordid and truthful picture of what is happening in Lumshnong. Now Playing

A documentary short on the effects of a contaminated 3.5-mile long natural tidal channel located in the heart of San Juan's poorest community. Past Presentation

Inspired by the popular OMI song Cheerleader, this musical parody set to a student-written song, highlights the importance of “bringing your own” in the fight against plastic pollution. Past Presentation

Our garbage accumulates and gives life to a plastic monster. We wish his reign to be short. It is probably time to think over how we produce and consume to pollute less. Now Playing

A Swedish mining giant dumps hazardous waste in Arica in northern Chile. Subsequently thousands of inhabitants are damaged.Now the survivors are seeking justice in a groundbreaking transnational corporate accountability trial. Past Presentation

The world is a paradise but more and more natural and manmade disasters happen. A German professor and his students invent a tiny but ingenious bag to clean polluted water after environmental catastrophes without chemicals and electricity to save people's life. Past Presentation

An independent art film, Precarious is a haunting evocation of the aftermath of the explosion at Chernobyl, 25 years on. Accompanied by testimony from a group of unseen veterans of the disaster, Precarious bears witness to both the folly and resilience of humans and to nature's fragility. Now Playing

MANN v. FORD follows the Ramapough Indians and their legal team, led by feisty and charming female attorney Vicki Gilliam of The Cochran Firm as they take on Ford and the EPA, battling to secure a healthy future for their children. Past Presentation

Atlanta is a bustling metropolis of the south eastern US. While this surge of growth is great news for the city's residents, the illuminated skyline is posing a serious hazard for the nation's migrating bird population. As the city expands and our skyline develops, local scientists work to find the balance of safety for ourselves and our avian life. Past Presentation

We follow a race against litter– Keep Clean and Run –that journeys across Southern Italy, from Mount Vesuvius to Etna, through parks and towns, mountains and beaches: 350 kilometres of stunning views. Roberto Cavallo’s race to protest littering entailed great fatigue and even encounters with those who fight the mafia, as he and others who joined him clean up as they run and explain their mission to others. Past Presentation

In the 1970s the start of oil extraction in the Ecuadorian Amazon engendered expectations of a new “era of prosperity.” But now, in a David-and-Goliath struggle for environmental justice, the negative impacts of oil production are being captured through a project combining citizen science, scholarly activism, indigenous and mestizo mobilization, and the use of frugal but advanced GIScience, drones, smartphones and bespoke apps. Past Presentation

A hard-hitting and revealing investigation of the1% in America at its very worst. Koch Brothers Exposed is the latest film from Acclaimed Director Robert Greenwald (Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price, Outfoxed, Rethink Afghanistan). From environmental pollution to their efforts to dismantle social security for working Americans, the Koch Brothers have launched a large network, attacking our American values. Past Presentation

Year after year, family members of an indigenous ethnic group of Huicholes, from the Sierra Madre of Nayarit and Jalisco, leave their communities with their entire families to work as tobacco laborers. Including pregnant women and children, they live at the tobacco fields and are exposed continuously to chemicals that cause many chronic and serious illnesses. Past Presentation

Examines the aftermath of the Australian Montara oil spill disaster on August 21,2009, which caused Australia’s worst oil spill. For more than 70 days crude oil flowed into the Timor Sea. The chemicals Corexit 9500 and Corexit 9527 were used to mitigate the spill. This film follows the story of the more than 15,000 West Timor people most affected and their class action suit in 2016. Past Presentation