In watching Chasing Ice I was mesmerized by all the beautiful ice-scapes shown, and it's all just ice. I was seeing, for the first time in video and not just pictures, how beautiful ice is. And it seeing these massive ice sheets, this man's passion to capture what's happening to them, and seeing the culmination of his work over a few years time was just mesmerizing. What he set out to do was show us something is happening and we don't have to agree why it's happening to take steps towards stopping it. Before watching this film, I had never heard of calving as it pertains to the splitting of ice from a larger glacier or ice sheet, and still, to see what was caught on video, I was enthralled. If I wasn't concerned about climate change before seeing this beautiful yet tragic human caused phenomenon, I was now.
As much as this film opened my eyes to something I knew I already cared about, it was something James Balog said that really solidified it for me. At one point, when he was standing near a glacier which he had seen the massive changes that had taken place, he referred to the pictures saved onto the memory card. Those pictures captured a landscape that once existed on this Earth, and this landscape no longer exists. Those images capture the only time in our history where that landscape existed. It's all ice, ice melts. It's not the same as the landscape we're used to here in Illinois. This is a landscape which has existed for a long time. We don't cry when the snow here in Illinois melts at the end of the winter - quite the opposite, in fact. The thought that what I do everyday, along with 7.5 billion other members of this planet, can destroy something so beautiful and natural is tragic.
What really surprised me in watching Chasing Ice was Balog's perseverance. He was so dedicated to this project, and all it took was when he saw the change that occurred to a glacier in 6 month's time. Once he saw this, he was determined to show the public these changes. Through all the camera malfunctions and through his complications with a knee injury, he still managed to complete this project. Once he had received his knee operation, the project seemed to be at an acceptable point which would have shown the public the difference in glacier size. It would have sufficed. But, to Balog, this was not enough. The Extreme Ice Survey team kept going.
After finishing Chasing Ice, I wonder, why isn't this news more mainstream? Why isn't the work of Balog and his EIS team more in the news? There must be so many other researchers who have come to these conclusions, who have witnessed what Balog himself captured, and yet this isn't plastered all over media outlets. This is our planet, the place we live and call home, and because these glaciers are melting thousands of miles away from us and we can carry on without seeing the effects of our actions, can we just ignore it until it's right in front of our eyes? In my home, I believe I am safe, warm, I have things that make my life easier, and I can exist comfortably. Except... I can't. I am conscious of the impacts my existence has on the environment, and this film reiterates that. I can continue to exist without thought for what my actions do to the home I share with 7.5 billion other people, but I do not want to. In my personal life, I do things that I know to lessen my footprint on this planet, and I do these things not for myself, but for everyone. This film reminds me that more people need to care because 1 person can only care enough to lessen the impact of so many. At some point, someone else has to carry that burden with them.
I really enjoyed your reflection about this film. It's inspiring to know a little about the dedication that Balog has on such a concerning issue. I'll have to give it a watch because I like learning about nature and educating myself about humanity's impact on it. Climate change and humankind's footprint is getting to a point where people can't ignore it and kick the can down the road for others to face the problem. It's so sad to witness the destruction and deterioration of the environment that has fostered our species to unthinkable heights. Hopefully there is still enough time that we can change these effects we've had on our environment because at some point we're going to make our home unlivable. There's really two options to me, either save what we've got or look to the stars and hope that the mars colony really works out because sooner rather than later we're going to be staring down the barrel of mass extinction even for humans. I completely agree that a new culture of environmental friendliness needs to be adopted because I personally think we owe it to Earth and all its wonderful biological species. A lot more people need to care and start caring fast in order to avoid a disaster if its even avoidable anymore.
ReplyDeleteHard agree. We can feel your investment in the film, Robyn. And look, your writing has inspired Jacob! ...
DeleteI decided to watch the documentary myself, and I was also moved by Balog's perseverance. The melting ice caps shouldn't have to be so politically polarizing, yet many citizens remain either dismissive or hostile to the topic. I enjoyed how you ended your reflection by addressing what this means to not only you, but to the rest of the world; we might be "safe and warm" in our society, but every decision we make, whether it be conscious or not, carries environmental weight. As people of this planet, we have a responsibility to preserve it for future generations, and even if that makes our lives slightly inconvenient, it will have been worth the effort.
ReplyDeleteYes, Robyn's reflection is motivational. It's fascinating (mesmerizing!) to see how the film has this impact, and then viewers radiate their affective intensities ... and more and more of us learn, think, act, don't act, change ... hope ... :)
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