Review Big Ideas For a Small Planet DVD

I was asked to take a look at a DVD of what looks to be a show called.

Big Ideas for a Small Planet

That will be seen on the Sundance Channel.

I cued it up today and found the DVD I have been sent had two programs on it.

Gen Y 

Food

Both are I believe, part of a series on going Green.

Gen Y had some very good ideas-what I would call lofty goals.  I found them to be accomplishable goals, however they were presented with a "We are the generation who will make a difference and save this planet, by cleaning up after the older generations." blah blah blah  I'd heard all of this before, from my own generation.  Right before we grew up and followed in the footsteps of our parents.  In some good and some bad things for the planet. 

I made notes while I watched Gen Y, the first one read:  Gen Y  Stick it!

But then the Gen Y show went on to talk about a Green Wedding.  Very cool.  It wasn't that much different than most weddings I have seen except the flowers were paper flowers, beautifully done.  The food was mostly local and cooked healthfully.  And there were little special details I liked, such as the invitations being printed not only on recycled paper, but also imprinted with what was I believe, Wild flower seeds.  Just awesome.

The last segment of Gen Y was a piece on a green college.  New dorms being built were shown and we were taken on a tour of them.  Some odd things-like when you opened the window the air conditioner went off, some unbelievable as the young tour guide showed us how opening the window and a door that one could close the bottom half and leave the top half open, would cut the necessity for using the air conditioning.  Even the tour guide didn't seem to be swallowing that completely-check out his eyes as he says it.  But then he showed us a toilet with separate flush buttons. Whole, and half a flush for when you just passed urine into it.  Right away that makes sense, and is something even I have thought about for my home toilets.

Then the Gen Y segment ended after some young people spouting things, something like:

"...knocking the door down.....Until you have to provide the income...to strike a balance" And they were going to "Take charge .....and get into the power positions."

The ideas the Gen Y'ers were talking about seemed to be good ones, quite do-able.  But it was presented with so much "in our face-blaming it all on us (I am 51) and our parents accusations it made it somewhat hard to take them seriously.  Also, I didn't feel any of the ideas shown in Gen Y could be attributed to the Gen Y's themselves.  As I reached for the remote to switch to the next segment on the DVD I was thinking about Gen Y and wishing for them some of the wisdom of those of us who came before them.  We were going to save the world too. Until most us of had to make a living.  Sure we bent, or even bowed to the system we had sworn to change, but many of us are going green now.  At least give us some credit.

Food was the next program.  The entire segment from start to finish was well done, attention getting and taught me things I did not know.

I had heard the words "Sustainable Food System" previously, but really didn't understand them until I watched this program.

I learned about a company called "Amy's Organic Meals" which is huge and offering families a change in frozen dinners.  From the "this will kill you eventually" meals we usually find in stores to some fine frozen dinners for adults and children alike, all organic!    I don't eat frozen dinners because I have the time to cook, but they idea behind them, healthy meals is a good one.

The second segment of Food, was about a small town that had a school with 55 students.  After comments by the kids about the quality of their school lunches, projects were begin to allow the students to plan, cultivate, tend and harvest organic gardens to supplement the school lunch program.  They also applied for a grant and built a large green house for year round gardening.

The third part of the Food segment concerned a family who grows grapes and makes wine from them "in concert with nature."   From the animals in the fields, whose fecal matter is worked into the compost, to the plants of the wet lands that purify the water and even the beneficial bugs that are raised.  And the wine?  Well I was surprised to see it was a brand I not only am aware of, but one I have bought.

I found good information, and lots of reasons to not only go green, but to buy organic too in Food program. 

On the whole, I found the series Big Ideas for a Small Planet a worth while show. 

As someone who routinely views these "going green" programs I enjoyed it and learned new things.

As for the Gen Y program, someone should remind these self entitled imps that some of us have been recycling since BEFORE they were born.  Rather than placing blame, they should have just kept urging us to keep going greener.  Kids!