An evening with the maker of 'The Story of Stuff'

Annie Leonard, the genious behind the short movie ‘The Story of Stuff’, was in Istanbul on May 31st for a screening of the movie. I was among the few lucky Istanbulites–nothing related to being invited, due to people’s lack of awareness!–who were able to watch the movie with her, after which, a Q&A session took place.

I already had a question in mind as I approached the movie theatre, since I had watched the movie several times–thanks to its brilliant webpage. What preoccupied my mind was about something which I had come to realize after looking at what socially and environmentally aware thinkers has said back in the 50s and 60s: We today cannot help but refer greatly to their studies, go against what they’ve gone against, and circulate around the same terms: Corporatism, consumerism, planned & perceived obsolescence, etc.

After this analysis, my question to her was about what she would give as an answer to what I keep asking myself: “Have we failed in coping with these menaces, and if we have, what has gone wrong?”

Annie was so sincere to avoid merry optimism, and agree with the fact that we have been failing and going worse. She strongly emphasised that having a soft spot for green issues is not enough, and the important thing is to see the big picture, “the economic undermine”, as she called it. Feeling the need to addressing my general criticism on a personal level, she underlined how she sees her contribution to the movement to be: She said that, most important of all, she feels responsible to the world as a U.S. citizen. Because, she added, besides all the export of garbage the U.S. has been carrying out in the course of the last 50 years, she pointed to the fact that her country has also been increasingly exporting its way of thinking and lifestyle. She told that this is what particularly worries her the most, and it has recently been approved when she saw “20 billboards of Sex and The City in the Istanbul Airport”.

Well, I think she has definitely had another major contribution: Articulating these issues with a very down to earth tone, in an easy to grasp and accessible format. Follow this link to another article to learn more about her work.