''Renewal'' is a 2008 feature-length
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...
about religious-environmental activists.
Directed and produced by American filmmakers Marty Ostrow and Terry Kay Rockefeller, the film includes eight stories that represent the growing religious-environmental movement. Each story is set in a different religious-tradition, addressing a different environmental concern. ''Renewal'' began airing on public television stations in the United States in April 2009.
Stories
The eight stories in ''Renewal'' are:
* A Crime Against Creation: Evangelicals bear witness to
mountaintop removal mining and the destruction of
Appalachia
Appalachia () is a cultural region in the Eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York State to northern Alabama and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ca ...
(11:20 min.)
* Going Green: GreenFaith in New Jersey helps congregations take the first steps to environmental action (14:20 min)
* Food for Faith: Muslim tradition and charity forge bonds between urban communities and sustainable farms in Illinois (14:50 min)
* Ancient Roots: The Teva Learning Center and Adamah in Connecticut bring environmental education together with Jewish tradition (17:30 min)
* Compassion in Action: Green Sangha, a Buddhist community in northern California, leads a campaign to save trees (11:10 min)
* Eco-Justice: The Holy Spirit inspires a battle against industrial contamination in small-town Mississippi (11:30 min)
* Sacred Celebration: Catholics and Native Americans embrace religious ritual in a struggle to protect New Mexico’s land and water (9:30 min)
* Interfaith Power and Light: Across America people of all faiths mount a religious response to global warming (9:25 min)
Presentation history
* In honor of
World Environment Day
World Environment Day (WED) is celebrated annually on 5 June and encourages awareness and action for the protection of the environment. It is supported by many non-governmental organizations, businesses, government entities, and represents the ...
2008, Renewal was screened at the United Nations.
* Renewal is featured in
Humane Society of the United States’ “All Creatures Great and Small Campaign.”
* Voted “Best of Fest” at the Hazel Wolf Environmental Film Festival in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
.
[
* Screened by over 1000 Interfaith Power and Light-affiliated congregations, in 29 states.][
* An official selection of the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival and National Tour, the largest environmental film festival in the United States, a festival for activists by activists.][
]
DVD release
The ''Renewal'' DVD includes the 90-minute sequence of the eight stories, as well as uncut stand-alone versions of the stories. It is being promoted as a flexible tool for community action groups, congregations, religious and environmental organizations.
See also
* Religion and environmentalism
* Spiritual ecology
Spiritual ecology is an emerging field in religion, conservation, and academia recognizing that there is a spiritual facet to all issues related to conservation, environmentalism, and earth stewardship. Proponents of Spiritual Ecology assert a nee ...
* Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology
The Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology is a multireligious and interdisciplinary project founded in 1998 and based at Yale University since 2006. Since 2023, it has operated under the auspices of the Yale Center for Environmental Justice (YCEJ). In ...
References
External links
Film Web Site
Interfaith Power and Light
GreenFaith
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Renewal (Documentary)
Environmentalism and religion
American documentary films
Documentary films about religion in the United States
Documentary films about environmental issues
2008 films
2008 in the environment
2008 documentary films
Films about activists
2000s English-language films
2000s American films