Embarking on an odyssey through the Himalayas, National Geographic Explorer and PSU Alumni Katie Conlon, PhD shares her journey in a tapestry of stories about resilience and hope.
"Voices from the Himalayas for Reducing Plastic Pollution" highlights how 18 communities across North India and Nepal are actively engaging in ending pollution and environmental degradation. This National Geographic Explorer project includes films, case studies, and thematic reflections on topics like environmental justice and zero waste, serves as an educational and inspirational tool for anyone interested in global environmental challenges. Emphasizing the power of collective action, it aims to visualize a shift towards a sustainable and interconnected relationship with the Earth, demonstrating that even small groups of committed individuals can affect global change.
For the screening we will watch 3 of the 18 short films, followed by a conversation with Katie:
1. Film: "Take it Easy, Easy Does It”
TIEEDI is an ecological forest training center and farm that teaches the art of working with Mother Nature. TIEEDI focuses on permaculture, zero waste, experiential environment education, regenerative tourism, natural farming, decentralized waste management solutions, and sustainable land and building design consultation.
Themes: Sustainable culture; permaculture; social justice; ecopreneurship; rural livelihoods; community empowerment; environmental education; youth engagement; materials recovery; traditional handcraft
2. Film: "Home of the Wind”
Greensight is a zero-waste village project that started in Mopungchuket village, with support from Zero Waste Himalayas and the Integrated Mountain Initiative. The village is home to approximately 700 households, and all these members of the community are members of the Greensight project. Since time immemorial, Mopungchuket has been dependent on nature, and this relationship started to suffer with the introduction of packaged foods and other plastics to the community. Zero waste not only is beneficial for the local ecosystems, but preserves their Naga culture, food, craft and agricultural practices.
Themes: Cultural preservation; sustainable livelihoods; youth empowerment; social justice; alternatives to plastic; local heritage; alternatives to plastics; cultural sustainability; traditional agricultural and food systems
3. Film: “Everest, Carry-Me-Back!”
Sagarmatha Next strives to promote sustainable tourism in the Khumbu region of Nepal through their waste education center, waste-to-art, waste management solutions, and community waste engagement. Blue Waste to Value is a social enterprise that aims to create value-from-waste, and engages multiple stakeholders (hotels, households, businesses, social enterprise) on creating a system of waste recovery pathways in Kathmandu. Moware Design stands for Mountain Waste Repurpose, and is the design house that creates aesthetically designed products from the mountain waste streams, such as turning used wine bottles into beautiful tableware products and non-recyclable HDPE plastic bottle caps into mani stones (Tibetan prayer stones) and Everest region replica souvenirs.
Themes: Conservation; environmental education; waste art; community engagement; ecotourism; recycling; mountaineering; materials recovery; cultural sustainability
This event is part of PSU's annual Research Week, which honors and elevates the exceptional research, scholarship, and creative work of PSU faculty, staff, and students. Explore more 2024 Research Week events!