8
Free Women
In the face of many obstacles, we meet a courageous group of women who have organized to change their world.
Throughout India, women are forming 'self-help groups' (SHGs) to combat the many issues facing them. With the great help of Vani Chenguttuwan, we spoke at length with the SHG in Kalugumalai, in the state of Tamil Nadu, about their successes.
Many of these women's organizational successes came after intensive work with the DHAN Foundation and its Kalanjiam Community Banking program ('Wealth' in the Tamil language).
These organizations provided on-the-ground support for the women, micro-finance for small-business start-ups, and extensive education in crafts production and marketing - traditional skills enhanced by good business practices.
Produced by PierreTerre.com as part of our public service programming.
What's Behind the Dollar?
Money - where does it come from? Money expert James Bernard Quilligan, Executive Director of the Center for Global Negotiations, describes where U.S. money comes from, and why, even today, all U.S. money comes from the private Federal Reserve Bank, not from the U.S. Treasury. The U.S. currency is to backed only by debt, but this was not always so!
Find out where all that money comes from, with author Krista Keenan.
Genie in a Bottle: UNLEASHED
An amazing, award-winning video (v2.0) by (then) child-filmmakers Stephen and Trace, about nuclear weapons.
Please watch with your children, please forward so children see this wonderful short film, re-broadcast with permission from Trace's Mom.
Stephen and Trace (now much older teenagers) were disappointed in the amount of information their school taught about the U.S. bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. So, they decided to find out more all on their own! Now they share with you what they found.
Global Security with Jonathan Granoff
Jonathan Granoff, Esq., President of the Global Security Institute, describes how a more peaceful world can be achieved without the extraordinary threat of nuclear weapons.
Produced by: Gary Blanchard, 11/1/2004 Language: English Run Time: 30 min. 0 sec. Story Level 2 = Children may need to ask their parents about the meaning of the Story Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 License. Location: National Constitution Center, Philadelphia, PA.
Earthship Home Construction - Narrated Slideshow
Narrated visit to the Earthship location northwest of Taos, New Mexico in the US, showing construction techniques. This is a simple narrated video showing a site visit in 2009 by my father and I.
Earthship is a wonderful, creative, beautiful and very sustainable building style pioneered by Michael Reynolds. This video was independently produced without affiliation to Earthship, Garbage Warrior the film or Michael Reynolds....but we think you're all great!
For more information:
EarthShip.com
GarbageWarrior.com
Run Time: Approx. 9 minutes.
Language: English
Ramesh Ferris and the End of Polio
For decades, Rotary Clubs around the world have focused on one goal - the Eradication of Polio. In India, this required one of the largest civilian mobilizations in human history.
Together with many groups, here is how they did it.
The lesson from their efforts is simple and clear:
We can achieve any goal, complete any great work we set out to do.
Run Time: 8 minutes
Language: English
Leo Burke Explains the Commons - #Commons Education Series A
Professor Leo Burke of the University of Notre Dame describes the commons and the benefits of a commons viewpoint in this interview recorded in Berlin, Germany at the commons conference sponsored by the Heinrich Boll Stiftung (Heinrich Boll Foundation) in late 2010.
Students interested in the commons should also read the following article about Professor Burke by another well-know commons expert, Jay Walljasper:
A World that Works for Everyone
By Jay Walljasper
Original article in Notre Dame Magazine:
http://magazine.nd.edu/news/27932-a-world-that-works-for-everyone/
PUBLISHED: WINTER 2011-12 POSTED IN: CAMPUS & COMMUNITY AND CURRENT AFFAIRS
You would expect Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business to focus its teaching on making profits from the world as it is instead of asking students to explore how to fundamentally change it.
Becoming Human Again: Occupy Wall Street and the Restoration of Caring - #Commons
The Occupy Wall Street protests have uncovered what we had refused to see, and asked us to re-look at what had been taken for granted:
We have a good world when we take care of each other, recognize our interdependence, and correct the injustices that erode the fundamental goodness of our society.
Filmed in Late October 2011, we found so many extraordinarily articulate Occupy Wall Street-ers who were willing to say what needed to be said: that we are better when we do not allow a tiny few to degrade the quality of life for many.
Cameras:
Bunker Seyfert
Heather Craig
Production Assistance:
Krista Keenan
Interviews:
Kevin Hansen
Consensus Democracy at Occupy Wall Street #OWS #Commons
Consensus Democracy - How do the Occupy Wall Street protesters reach decisions in a very diverse group?
We filmed at the Occupy Wall Street protests recently. One of the wonderful things to emerge in these protests has been the Consensus Democracy approach: broad, highly inclusive, community-focused and introspective - everyone has a voice. This form of decision-making is similar to older forms - for example, Quaker Letters - used to find central commonalities among diverse groups.
Consensus Democracy is very powerful. When decisions are reached, you know that the vast majority agree; and that essentially all in the group will accept the result. There is a lot of listening required: deeply understanding the others' points of view and priorities - good skills for us to re-learn now, especially in U.S. politics!
Common Healing - trailer v3 #Commons
Twelve Benefits of a Commons-Based Approach. During the process of filming the documentary Common Healing, it has become clear that there are many benefits from re-looking at difficult, immovable situations from the ancient perspective of the commons.
Support Our Work
Original film and supporting research don't come cheaply. We try to find support as best we can for each feature, but try to get the film out first. Please support our investigations by purchasing a DVD of our feature film Nicotine Bees for only $14.99. For a donation of $100 you will receive a signed copy of your DVD and we'll call you to help your efforts move forward as best we can together.
We are committed to the sustainable 'Open Source' sharing of our work. Our work is supported by those who want to help make a difference for the world. That could include you too. Please consider pledging to our ongoing efforts to provide 'The Most Good for the Most Life'.
News
- Earthship Home Construction - Narrated Slideshow 1,035
- UK Parlia. Chair: "...serious questions...EU pesticides regulation... 2,100
- UK Parliament Holds Hearings on Honeybee Collapse 2,124
- Canada: Fetuses Have Widespread Pesticide Residues 2,124
- Ramesh Ferris and the End of Polio 1,679
- Create a Honey Bee Haven! 4,579
- Three More Countries Restrict Bee-Killing Nicotine Pesticides 4,554
- Bee-Killing Nicotine Pesticide Illegally Registered in US - One Million+ Sign... 23,883
- Honeybee Dieoff Link to Corn Planting Process - Italy Researchers 5,638
- Top US Bee Experts: Nicotine Pesticides Worsen Bee Diseases 5,874
Today's Most Popular Content
- Dr. Hans Blix of the Commission on Weapons of Mass Destruction - Introduction by Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute 11
- 10-Year Old Felix: Plant for the Planet Campaign (Deutsch with subtitles) 11
- Nicotine Bees - Trailer 7
- Prerna Means Inspiration: Girls Refuse Forced Marriages to Gain an Education 6
- Leo Burke Explains the Commons - #Commons Education Series A 5
- State of the Union 2010 (our version - this film got 230,000 hits in 3 weeks...) 5
- The Happiest Place on Earth? How the People of Bali Created Paradise 4
- The Khan Game - A Nuclear Fable 4
- Wangari Maathai 4
- Trash Beach 4
- Global Marshall Plan II: Establish and Meet Global Environmental Targets 4
- Global Security with Jonathan Granoff 4
- What's Behind the Dollar? 4
- Earth Condominium: Organizing the Global Neighborhood 4
- Thomas Greco Explains the Debt-Basis of Modern Money - #Commons Education Series A 4