Do you know the scale of the impact you have on the environment? In this ever-more modern world, which separates the consumer from the production process, we tend to lose touch with our impact on the environment. However, the media doesn’t. Delve deep into these three key documentaries, which show you the huge impact the average person has on the environment in ways that they didn’t even know: from topics such as fast fashion and buying jeans, to the food bought in the supermarket and on your plate, to bagging your groceries in plastic bags.
1. River Blue (2017)
The Fast Fashion Industry is taking over mainstream media. But do you know the impact that even buying a pair of jeans has on the Earth’s waterways? River Blue investigates the impact the textile industry has on public health and the environment through toxic chemical dumping and how a few companies today are attempting to reverse the damage by creating new forms of denim through recycled products. Through revelatory imagery of children losing their olfactory sense due to the chemicals in rivers and lakes, which are dyed completely black, this is an eye-opening must-watch documentary that brings to the viewer’s mind the impact they have through their consumption of fashion.
2. Food, Inc. (2008)
Do you know where your food comes from? Before the supermarket? Food, Inc. explores the origins of the chicken, beef, corn, pork, etc. that end up on your kitchen table. They uncover the truth about the unethical farming, the negligence of the food safety industry, how the food industry promotes obesity, the hidden truths about organic products, and the monopolizing companies that seem to only care about profit. Never-before-seen footage captures the atrocities inside the meat-packing companies. This extremely impactful documentary highlights the hidden truths of where your food comes from and makes the viewer rethink their eating habits and the origins of their food.
3.Bag It (2010)
This enticing 2010 documentary follows Jeb Barrier as he investigates the harmful effects that the usage of plastic bags and single-use plastics has on not only the environment, but also on the human body. This down-to-earth and home-video-feeling documentary allows the viewer to self-reflect on their impact on trash and the impact it has on them. Barrier investigates how plastic bag bans have helped cities, how the chemicals in plastic bags cause a variety of diseases and disorders, and how to lessen your single-use plastic impact in a world that seems to have forgotten about reusable containers. If you need a little push or are interested in taking a few small steps to ensure better health and a better future for our planet, make sure to check out this cozy documentary.
Amy Cooke is a first-year student assistant at Media Services.
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