As Zero Waste Week continues this week, I thought I would share a couple of films I have been recommended on the subject of reducing waste. Perhaps this is something like me, you can add to your #ZeroWasteWeek pledge (i.e., watch the films and be inspired, or maybe prodded more likely, into action!) or maybe Dorset Energized will put on a screening sometime – please let us know if you want to get involved with a film night or know anywhere in Dorset screening these!

1. Trashed (Feature Film, 2012)

Trashed – No Place For Waste, starring Jeremy Irons, looks at the risks to the food chain and the environment through pollution of our air, land and sea by waste. The film reveals surprising truths about very immediate and potent dangers to our health. It is a global conversation from Iceland to Indonesia between the film star Jeremy Irons and scientists, politicians and ordinary individuals whose health and livelihoods have been fundamentally affected by waste pollution. Visually and emotionally the film is both horrific and beautiful: an interplay of human interest and political wake-up call. But it ends on a message of hope: showing how the risks to our survival can easily be averted through sustainable approaches that provide far more employment than the current ‘waste industry’. The film premiered in Cannes 2012 and has won 8 awards.

You can watch this online for a very modest download fee – just go to http://www.trashedfilm.com/purchase or watch the trailer below:

2. N0 Impact Man (Feature Film, 2009)

In No Impact Man, Colin Beavan decides to completely eliminate his personal impact on the environment for the next year. It means eating vegetarian, buying only local food, and turning off the refrigerator. It also means no elevators, no television, no cars, busses, or airplanes, no toxic cleaning products, no electricity, no material consumption, and no garbage. No problem – at least for Colin – but he and his family live in Manhattan. So when his espresso-guzzling, retail-worshipping wife Michelle and their two-year-old daughter are dragged into the fray, the No Impact Project has an unforeseen impact of its own. Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein’s film provides an intriguing inside look into the experiment that became a national fascination and media sensation, while examining the familial strains and strengthened bonds that result from Colin and Michelle’s struggle with their radical lifestyle change.

You can watch this online for FREE – just go to http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/no_impact_man or watch the trailer below:

3. The Story of Stuff (Short Film, 2007)

The Story of Stuff, originally released in December 2007, is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It’ll teach you something, it’ll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the Stuff in your life forever.

You can watch this short film online for FREE – just go to http://storyofstuff.org/movies/story-of-stuff or watch the trailer below:

There’s so many more great looking environmental and food themed films out there I want to watch, but these 3 should do for now!

Please send us your reviews on these films and any other recommendations by submitting your Comments below : )