The Amazon forest—"The Green Ocean"—is not only the source of the highest biodiversity of life on Earth, but also acts as a massive hydrological pump that is essential to maintaining climate stability for the whole planet: In effect, the health of the river and the rainforest is fundamental to our survival.
But in the last thirty years vast tracts of the Amazon forest have been destroyed, most recently by soya plantations that supply the world markets, and previously by logging, mining and cattle ranching. To date an area larger than France has been destroyed, and though industry has been good for the Brazilian economy, the cost has been unprecedented drought in Amazonia, increased hurricane activity in North America, and the imminent demise of the Bolivian glaciers.
In Amazon: The End of Infinity, representatives of the indigenous people of Amazonia, Western religious leaders, scientists,environmentalists and policy makers come together to examine the ecological reality in the Amazon basin, the global impact of deforestation and, importantly, to propose sustainable solutions to preserving the forest for the future.
The film examines the historical split between religion and science in regards to the environment; the ecological lessons to be learned from the indigenous people of Amazonia; the interdependence of ecosystems and sustainable livelihoods for all those who live in the region; and how payments for ecological services must be factored in to economic equations regarding the ecosystems on which we all depend.
© 2009 Becket Films and used with permission (http://www.becketfilms.com).
To purchase this video, visit The Orthodox Marketplace.
Tune in on Sunday, December 20, 2009 at 7pm ET on CBS Learn More »
Learn the history of the Theological School of Halki since its establishment in 1844. Learn More »
YouTube: Subscribe to the GreenPatriarch channel (on the Environmental Symposia) or the Ecumenical Patriarchate channel (on the US visit).
Friday, February 19, 2010
Our most holy Orthodox Church today commemorates its own feast day, and – from this historical and martyric See of the Ecumenical Patriarchate – the Mother Church of Constantinople directs its blessing, love and concern to all of its faithful and dedicated spiritual children throughout the world, inviting them to concelebrate in prayer. Blessed be the name of the Lord! Those who endeavored over the ages to suppress the Church through various visible and invisible persecutions; Read more...
Please enter a search term to begin your search.