Film Recommendation - "Dirt!"

"DIRT! The Movie--directed and produced by Bill Benenson and Gene Rosow--takes you inside the wonders of the soil. It tells the story of Earth's most valuable and underappreciated source of fertility--from its miraculous beginning to its crippling degradation." (www.dirtthemovie.org)

I recently watched this documentary (it's available on Netflix as part of their Watch Instantly selection), and I found it to be enchanting, illuminating, and - in spite of the infuriating and devastating destruction it described - hopeful.

The film begins by describing the many uses and purposes of dirt - everything from a source of food and crops, to a source of spiritual strength. Then the film goes on to recount all the ways we have abused and destroyed this precious resource - predominantly through industrial agriculture, the methods of which are waging "war against the soil" while also exacerbating the effects of climate change. The film finishes with a list of proposed solutions to rescue dirt and our relationship with it - many of which are in practice and growing in popularity already, such as agroecology, greening of urban areas, and community supported agriculture (CSAs). I highly recommend spending 80 minutes watching this informative and inspiring documentary.