Shuswap in Transition presents The Economics of Happiness, an award-winning, full-length documentary film, at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 11 at the Salmar Classic Theatre.
The film, by Helena Norberg-Hodge, Steven Gorelick and John Page, describes a world moving simultaneously in two opposing directions.
On the one hand, government and big business continue to promote globalization and the consolidation of corporate power. At the same time, all around the world people are resisting those policies, demanding a re-regulation of trade and finance—and, far from the old institutions of power, they’re starting to forge a very different future.
Communities are coming together to re-build more human scale, ecological economies based on a new paradigm – an economics of happiness.
Five years in the making, The Economics of Happiness is a global tour-de-force – going beyond identifying problems, it outlines realistic solutions, drawing inspiration from the emerging worldwide movement for economic localization—urban gardens in Detroit, Transition Towns, hands-on education in Japan, community farming in India, cultural preservation in Peru.
The film shows that the solutions to our most pressing environmental, economic and social crises can simultaneously improve our quality of life. It features acclaimed economists, environmentalists and scholars including Vandana Shiva, Zac Goldsmith, Bill McKibben, David Korten, Juliet Schor, Richard Heinberg, Bhutanese film director Khyentse Norbu, and the first prime minister of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, Samdhong Rinpoche.
“A powerful film that cuts deeply to the heart of the global crisis. Magnificent.” says David Suzuki, television presenter and environmentalist.
Author and philosopher Joanna Macy writes: “It is good news indeed to find so persuasive an explanation of our ailing world as The Economics of Happiness. This film connects the dots between climate chaos, economic meltdown and our own personal suffering, stress, loneliness and depression.”
Zac Goldsmith, a member of the UK parliament, called it “A must-see film for the future of the planet.”
Shuswap in Transition is a citizen-inspired initiative to help Salmon Arm and the Shuswap region transition to a low-carbon, sustainable future better prepared to weather the inevitable shocks presented by the challenges of fossil fuel depletion, climate change and global economic instability.
Displays in the lobby on film night will include Shuswap Seed Savers and Shuswap Food Action Co-op.
Werner and Brigitte Gysi will sell organic snacks and drinks. Tickets will be available at the door for a suggested minimum donation of $5.
