I love it when items from my Life To Do List work together to help me be a better person.
On my list is #33: Watch 25 of the last 10 years’ Academy-nominated Documentary Feature Films. One of the films that I’ve chosen to watch is An Inconvenient Truth which went on to win the Academy Award in 2007 for Best Documentary Feature. You know, it’s that one film with Al Gore in it. Somehow, I never saw the film (insert gasp and tisk tisk here).
Watching the film was scary. There is an animated scene with a Polar Bear that is trying to find a piece of icecap to rest on and can’t. Even though it wasn’t a real polar bear and the scene was a dramatic extrapolation of what could be, it literally brought tears to my eyes.
The film inspired me in many ways, particularly in that it re-energized my commitment to documentary film as a medium of social change. One of the quotes in the title sequence at the end of the film is “Pray while moving your feet.” I take that as a direct order. I demand that I do better.
Here’s the connection from the To Do List. My #72 is Calculate my carbon footprint, reduce it. I felt compelled after watching this film to move my feet while praying that the Earth is saved. That said, I moved my fingers to my computer and calculated my Carbon Footprint at www.climatecrisis.net. I nervously filled out the simply form about my vehicle, flight, and energy consumption.
The embarrassing truth
I was appalled to find out that my Carbon Footprint is “Larger Than Average.” The Majority of my consumption actually comes from my travel (which is particularly upsetting because I feel that because I travel and see the world, I love it and want to protect it). Ways that I, in particular can reduce my footprint are:
1. Lowering my electricity bill.
2. Lowering my gas bill.
3. Driving less miles per year.
All of these are really easy to do and make me feel particularly good about completing #34 on my list: Host a roommate discussion about how we can be more environmentally mindful in our apartment. To read more about how that discussion went, click here.
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Janelle K. Eagle is infamous for always having her hands tied up in multiple projects simultaneously. She's directed a lot of theater, worked on some films, and raised lots of money for non-profits. She travels all the time and loves to share her videos, photography and writing via this blog. 
