A River Runs Through Us

A nice documentary on River-Activism. The film directs it's criticism at large scale dam projects that neglect to take into account: the effect they will have on the lives of the indigenous communities that rely on the rivers for their livelihoods; the effect they will have on the watershed and ecosystem that relies upon it; and and ignore the fact that they are often done for the wrong reasons, and as such, are bad policy. The filmmakers interview local activists from communities all over the world that are directly affected by dam projects; policy makers fighting against the dam projects; and human rights organizations offering alternate energy technologies on a more community based level (as opposed to the large scale federally funded programs). They show how many dams are planned to provide electricity specifically for industries like mining, which also have negative impacts on their communities... so why shouldn't they fight against it? The interviewees are in unanimous agreement that large scale dam projects are NOT the answer to the energy woes of industrializing and third world nations. Instead arguing that alternative projects like community or household solar generation; small scale hydrological generation (ie small what wheels); and wind generation, which, if managed properly, can provide sufficient electricity to those who require it, and those who never had it in the first place. Hard to argue with that! Very interesting and informative documentary on an issue everyone should be concerned about, OUR WATER!!! PROTECT IT!!!

A River Runs Through Us is a film that covers the global dam-fighting movement in a way that no other film has previously. It is beautifully shot in Temacapulin, a small village in the Jalisco state of Mexico. The film takes place during a gathering called Rivers For Life 3, organized by International Rivers, which assembled the world's most prominent scholars, scientists, activists and organizations that work to protect rivers and the communities that depend on them.

Director, Carla Pataky worked with International Rivers campaigner, Lori Pottinger to gather amazing footage of the town, which was slated to be inundated by water from the proposed Zapatillo Dam. The film features interviews with people from around the world who are part of the global struggle to keep rivers free flowing and prevent dams from displacing communities and damaging riverine ecosystems.