Being a journalist accustomed to stories in far-off foreign places, I did not expect to have the same sensation in traveling to the food-growing regions of California.  But taking a journey into the state's agricultural centers with photographer Peter Cunningham, my ITP collaborator, was indeed like a journey into a foreign land. » Read More

Earth, wind, and water - falling sky, rising river, and shaky ground 

Over the last few months, I unexpectedly found myself in the midst of a series of natural disasters - a flood, a windstorm, and the  aftermath of an earthquake. 

Two of these took place in my current hometown - a small village in Southern Thailand where the annual monsoon arrived with unheralded intensity; bringing a windstorm stronger than any local could remember.  The fiercest gust of wind lasted only 30 seconds, but was powerful enough to devastate acres of old-growth forest and destroy my next-door neighbor's house.  Giant trees came crashing down everywhere, vines and branches propelled outward like shrapnel, leaving giant craters in the ground where the roots had been.  Amazingly, no one was hurt, and after a display of such intense power, the skies cleared and the sun came out. » Read More

Please see blog post categories listed under Mark Schapiro and Center for Investigative Reporting.

A Voice from the Field     

The past four months, with support from Invoking The Pause, have inspired an acceptance in my life: that my individual voice as an activist filmmaker does not just matter in the fight to transform the agricultural system but is, in fact, a critical component in the struggle.

You see, not even so long ago, I insisted on maintaining a professional distance between my relationships with the people whose stories I was telling and the narrative of the films I created, as I thought that’s what made a good filmmaker.  

» Read More

From Kronos to Kairos:  Invoking The Pause - Acre, Brazil

"Lots of things have changed since I was a child," Erishi a 15-year-old pregnant daughter of one of the Ashaninka leaders told us in Portuguese when we asked her if she had noticed any changes in the climate in her area.  "When I was a child I never used to get sunburned.  Now I do.   I used to be able to dive into the river, now it's too shallow..."  Erishi, who has a quiet, thoughtful, demeanor, with wise eyes, rosy cheeks and a kind smile calmly described the changes to the climate she has seen in her corner of the Amazon jungle where her community subsists entirely off resources they grow, hunt and fish in the jungle.  I was amazed that she could recall such dramatic changes at her young age.  » Read More

From her earliest memories, Nicole Heller has been attuned to the relationships we share with our environment and other living things. Professionally, she became an ecologist, and in the last five years  has focused on climate change and how best to communicate its complexities to a global audience.  Her interest and advocacy began at a young age with a spider. As a girl she recalls creating a stir in the neighborhood, protecting spiders from mistreatment by one of the local children. » Read More

 

The latest update from Libby Modern as The Super Power Magic Motion Machine (SPM3) evolves on its pedal-powered journey!  SPM3 is a mobile art installation that closely resembles a bicycle and trailer.  However, this is no ordinary bike… SPM3 is a custom-made piece of art that transforms into a pedal-powered generator, allowing three other bikes to hook to its mobile trailer and create power.  SPM3 aims to raise awareness about energy generation, energy consumption, human innovation, and community empowerment. » Read More

Watch your Windowfarm being made right now in upstate New York…

Windowfarms Production Video Link   » Read More

In 2008, Britta Riley incubated the idea of growing fresh and nutritious food in her small, urban apartment in Brooklyn. By 2009, Windowfarms was born. Britta, an artist, designer, and entrepreneur, expanded her idea of a hydroponic garden to source knowledge and improve her design from a community of likeminded “do-it-yourselfers.” Fast-forward three years: an Invoking the Pause grant, an astounding $257,000 Kickstarter fundraising campaign, and 32,000 world-wide Windowfarmers later; now, the first “fully manufactured in the USA” Windowfarm kits are about to make their way to homes and apartments around the world.

We spoke with Britta about her new project, the risks she took in bringing her latest design to market, and her 18-foot Windowfarm installation/public garden in Louisville, Kentucky.

» Read More