Conservationists to speak about the CNMI's sea turtle and Fanihi populations

Two of the CNMI’s endangered species, the Hawksbill sea turtle and the Marianas fruit bat (Fanihi), will be featured at the next “First Friday Films” at American Memorial Park.

The event starts at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 3 with the film Home for Hawksbill followed by our second screening: Fanihi: A Cultural Digest. Joining us to shed more light on the conservation efforts underway to protect these species will be Tammy Summers, Julia Boland and Joe Ruak from the Department of Land and Natural Resources – Division of Fish and Wildlife.

Before each film, they will talk briefly about conservation and protection of the sea turtle and Fanihi populations in the CNMI. There will be a question and answer session after both films. Viewers are encouraged to come early to enjoy displays in American Memorial Park’s Visitors Center lobby as well as stay after the film to have their questions answered by our presenters.

Two Films for December

Coming up on Friday December 3rd at 6:30pm, First Friday Films will be screening two short films that highlight two threatened and endangered species here in the CNMI; the Fanihi (Marianas flying fox) and the Hawksbill seaturtle.

Fanihi: A Cultural Digest, a short film shot in the CNMI by Jonathan Fowler, discusses the complex issue that is the conservation of this import animal.  The film examines the ecological role the Fanihi plays on our islands as well as the cultural importance it has with the chamorro people.

Home for Hawksbill, a short film by Jordan Plotsky, tells the inspiring story of how three distinctly different cultural groups in the Solomon Islands came together to help protect this endangered species.  The film details how these communities went from hunting the turtle to localized extinction to providing a safe haven for the animal that mutually benefits all the groups involved.  You can visit the movies website here.

For planning purposes, the two films combined have an approximate run time of about 50 minutes.

We hope to see you in December!

Blue Gold This Friday!

Just a reminder that we will be showing Blue Gold: World Water Wars this Friday at 6:30pm at the American memorial Park Visitors center.


For more information on the film see post below.

After the film, Derek Chambers, from the Division of Environmental Quality's Safe Drinking Water branch, will discuss where our tap and drinking water come from on Saipan and highlight ways we can become better stewards of this precious resource. The Visitor’s Center lobby will also feature an exhibit about the declining supply of global freshwater and ways we can help conserve it.

  

We hope to see you Friday!

Blue Gold for November

On Friday November 5th, First Friday Films will be screening the film Blue Gold: World Water Wars at 6:30pm at the American Memorial Park Visitors Center.

Four-time "Best Documentary" award winner, Blue Gold sheds light on the waste and overuse of one of our most precious resources: fresh water. The film discusses the practices that have lead to the dwindling supply of this limited resource and follows various examples from around the globe of people struggling to maintain their access and rights to water.

"differs from many others of the same vein in offering opinions and ideas from a varied number of professionals and experts that could lead to tangible solutions."
- HESO Magazine

“A must see film for every person on the planet.”
- Greenmuse.com

Please join us for this wonderful film. For planning purposes, the film is 90min long. You can see the trailor below or learn more about the film by visiting their website here .

Trashed Wrap Up

Thanks to everyone that made it out for Trashed last Friday!

The movie was great, the exhibits put together by MINA, the National Park Service, and CRM were fantastic, and Steve Hiney from public works gave an excellent presentation on their programs.  So, a big thanks to all those folks as well.

As promised, below are a couple links to good how-to home compost sites:

http://www.thegardenofoz.org/composting101.asp

http://eartheasy.com/grow_compost.html

Both of these will give you all the information you need to start home composting.  I sent out some other resources on composting and recycling that we have here at DEQ and CRM to everyone on the email list.  If you are not on the list and would like to be, or would like these resources, contact me at aricbickel@deq.gov.mp and I can make that happen.

We hope to see everyone out next month!

TRASHED to be shown on October 1st

The end of September brings us the 25th annual International Coastal Cleanup, where thousands of volunteers take to coastal areas around the world be pick up garbage.  To coincide with this event, the First Friday Films series will feature TRASHED - the story of garbage...American style.

Official selection of the Newport Beach Film Festival, TRASHED takes us headfirst into the world of garbage.  The documentary aims to show the world just what happens to solid waste after it leaves our hands and homes.  With staggering facts such as 370 million tons of trash land-filled annually, or 1.37 billion cubic kilometers of ocean full of plastic, TRASHED encourages viewers to rethink the way that we consume products, reconsider the amount of waste we produce, and refocus on the pervasive environmental issue of over-consumption. 

Please join us for this eye-opening look at the effects that our throw-away culture is having on the environment.  The film will be shown at the American Memorial Park Visitor's center at 6:30pm on October 1st.  As always, it's FREE!

You can see the trailer and find more information about the film here.

"Pulitzer price winning author Russell Baker once said "The American dream is to turn goods into trash as fast as possible." Nowhere is this better illustrated than in Bill Kirkos' film Trashed. This film is a must see."

                   -Professor Raymond Benton, Loyola University

Dirt! this Friday, NRCS to speak, plants to take

It's that time again!  This Friday we will be screen Dirt! The Movie (see previous post for description).  The film will begin at 6:30 (note our new time!) at the American Memorial Park Visitor's center.

Members of our local Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will speak after the film on soil in the CNMI and what resource managers are doing to conserve this extremely valuable resource (as well as answer audience questions).

For your planning purposes, the movie runs about one hour and 20 minutes.  Come early at 6 p.m. to visit our engaging soil displays on composting, tree plantings and environmentally friendly farming practices (and to make sure you get a seat...). 

While supplies last, each family will have the opportunity to take home one native plant after the film courtesy of the CNMI Department of Agriculture, Forestry Division.

We hope to see you there!