Environmental documentaries in times of coronavirus

During a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has us all confined to our homes, we are all monitoring the spread of the virus, yearning for the promising news that its rising curve has started to fall. We hope with bated breath that the global crisis through which we are living gradually begins to subside.

However, when all this has passed, the other environmental problems threatening our planet will remain. And we cannot afford to forget them. That is why, in light of the fact that we are all surely taking some time to entertain and enrich ourselves with audiovisual content, here at Sustainability for all, we have compiled a list of documentaries and series about climate change and the environmental issues that continue to harm many of the Earth's ecosystems. So, if you like, you and your near and dear can share a sustainable awareness session from the comfort of your couch.

The Age of Stupid

The Age of Stupid is a documentary presented by English actor Pete Postlethwaite that invites us to reflect on how we are treating our planet and what life will be like in 2055 if we do not reverse climate change. The Age of Stupid is a fictional tale based, as we are warned by the film, on the predictions of mainstream science. It presents us with the life of six real characters whom the director filmed over a four-year period and who are watched by the documentary's protagonist from the future.

Mission Blue

The documentary Mission Blue follows oceanographer Sylvia Earle's campaign to save our oceans from the planet's perils, such as plastics, overfishing and global warming. "The ocean is dying", such is the maxim taken by this courageous biologist as the bastion of her campaign. To watch this documentary film is to bear witness to an incredibly beautiful and intensely painful dive into the depths of an ocean more fragile, threatened and vulnerable than we ever could have imagined.

Chasing Ice

Chasing Ice is a film that could convert even the few remaining climate change deniers or sceptics. This documentary's protagonist, National Geographic photographer James Balog, tells us how he too once belonged to that group of disbelievers, but images of the collapsing Arctic ice could put an end to anyone's reservations. In Chasing Ice, the photographer uses powerful time-lapse cameras to capture just how the Arctic glaciers are changing and melting. A documentary filled with extraordinary and devastatingly beautiful and emphatic imagery.

Terra

Our previous recommendations may have dealt with melting ice and the ocean, but this time we're recommending you try out Terra, which explores the animal kingdom and how humans are responsible for the disappearance of thousands of the Earth's species. Much like the others, this film is visually spectacular and a well-needed slap to the conscience.

The Ivory Game

The Ivory Game is a documentary film condemning the poaching and commercialisation of elephants in order to trade their ivory horns. The filmmakers embarked on a perilous journey into the global network of ivory trafficking involving poachers and smugglers, meaning that as well being a very real condemnation, this documentary turns into an absolute thriller, full of suspense from beginning to end.

No impact man

Is it possible to live in the New York of shopping and consumption and lead a sustainable life at the same time? This documentary is an attempt to do so. It follows New York writer Colin Beavon and his family as they plan to abandon their life of comfort and shrink their carbon footprint and the environmental impact their behaviour is having on the planet as much as possible. The documentary is a challenge — we'll let you discover the outcome for yourself.