Thoughts on Michael Moore documentary 'Planet of the Humans'

I just watched a documentary called Planet of the Humans by Micheal Moore and Jeff Gibbs.

I think anyone who is actively trying to do their part to fight global warming should see it. It has shaken me up pretty badly, and it has a direct impact on my work with climate change education. As an author of educational graphic novels about environmental issues and climate change I need to be super careful with the information I pass on to the younger generations.

I’m not saying that after seeing the film I'm going to stop believing in green technology, but it does raise many questions about apparent climate solutions that I, along with millions of others including the youth activists, have taken as gospel.

It is healthy to question what appears as a truth, and this is what this film does. I think we need to take the messages in this film seriously and be careful with what we take at face value.

I still believe renewable energy is the way to go, but just because something like solar power is fashionable right now does not mean it does not have a dark side. At the end of the day, I think the best take-away we can hang on to from the documentary is the solid validity of what in climate-change terms is called ‘no regrets’ actions: these are actions that, whatever the situation, will always be good to do. E.g. plant trees (in the right place, at the right time, with the right species), reduce our consumption habits, save water, stuff like that.

For me the documentary drove home an uncomfortable fact that I think plenty of people, including myself, already know but avoid facing up to: as a species, humans need to change. I'm talking transformational change. Its not enough to merely switch to cleaner technology, for the reasons that the film exposes. If that is all we do, its basically the same as kicking the same old can further down the street. The solution does not lie in technology alone, because the problem is deeper than that: the real problem is humans' continued, unchecked consumption of what are in fact limited resources. Those of us who work and try to live in the bounds of sustainability already know this, and the bottom line is hard to swallow.

Our planet can't take it anymore.

After watching the documentary you may feel, like I do, that the very least we need to do right now is simply be wary about cheerfully jumping on the renewables bandwagon as the perfect solution to all our problems. It is more complicated than that.

Watch it if you can, and share what you think. I had tears in my eyes and it deepened the low-intensity, background climate anxiety I started feeling three years ago.
Ultimately, the film set me back in the sense that my confidence in certain public figures, organizations and the promise of green technology has been shaken. I am seeking the truth, reliable sources of information that I can in turn safely and responsibly transmit to other people, including children.

But I also feel hope and enthusiasm for the challenge we face. If there are flaws in the renewables energy sector, as there are bound to be in anything new, it doesn't mean we can't fix them. Bottom line: renewables are not yet perfect, so we must be wary of touting that technology as THE perfect solution: it is not.

We must be especially wary regarding the politics and economics behind the renewable sector. Corruption lurks everywhere, and that includes the Green Economy. We need to do a lot more than just rig up some solar panels; the first thing to do is get our facts straight. Seek the truth.
Cutting down forests to create biomass as renewable energy is NOT a solution - quite the opposite. The fact that there are powerful lobbies promoting this is of great concern; in the grand scheme of things it is an example of the regrettable imperfection of the renewable revolution. We must acknowledge the imperfections, reject them and loudly, but still keep on moving forwards towards sustainability in the best ways we know how.

I wanted to share my tumultuous thoughts after watching the documentary. Looking forward to comments!