San Francisco Learns About the Dirt Under Its Feet (Under the Concrete)

At the Community Cinema San Francisco screening earlier this week we welcomed over 130 audience members to the San Francisco Main Library to see Dirt! The Movie.

In the film everyone who was interviewed about dirt seemed so excited- thrilled to talk about the relationship they have with dirt. Fortunately for us, this excitement carried over into our discussion after the film.

We had a panel of extremely dedicated and informed professionals in the environmental world join us. We got a chance to partner with SF Department for the Environment for a second time this season, this time joined by Donnie Oliveira the Green Jobs Coordinator. We also had Kirsten Schwind, Program Director for Bay Localize and Suzi Palladino, Program Director from Garden for the Environment.

This video edits together clips from the entire event in just a few minutes. It’s worth a watch.

Audience members had a conversation with our panel about the possibilities of rooftop gardens, how our youth and young adults are helping our local environment as part of the City’s Urban Green Team and how we can all take small steps to be more involved in solutions for our environment.

Donnie suggests that we all try and plant one tree. However, his suggestion is not without a warning: once you plant one tree, you get ‘the itch’ to do more. You get invested- his statement is supported by a friend in the audience from SF Environment, a Green Warrior.

Suzi recommends that we all try to compost. Apparently there are several ways to get started- and you can even compost indoors. For people like me, who would like to try and compost but have no idea how, there are free classes every Saturday at Garden for the Environment.

As is often the case with Community Cinema events, I am completely surprised by something I learn from the panel- this screening was no different. Being a ‘city girl’ I was completely unaware that it’s legal in San Francisco for me to have a dairy cow, a pig and a goat in my backyard… who knew?!

There was a fair amount of talk about accessibility to food in this country and more specifically, access to healthy organic produce. Which companies get subsidies and what struggles do small farmers face?

Audience members also had knowledge to share with one another: which Farmers Markets are great in San Francisco, and farmers who will provide you will fresh, organic produce in exchange for your work.

Dirt! The Movie is definitely the kind of film that energizes people to do something- whether it’s to plant a tree in your yard (or a neighbor’s), to finally figure out what goes in that green bin that’s been empty in your kitchen for months, or a Saturday workshop on composting- it seems there is room for all of us to get a little dirty.

Tags: dirt! the movie, ecology, garden, local produce, organic, San Francisco