If you’ve ever hiked in the woods, you probably know the rule,
“Leave No Trace.” “Way to Go!” tells the story of Mt. Shasta’s sun-powered composting toilet and the local volunteers who maintain it, keeping poop invisible and sweet at 7,900 feet. Shot on location, “Way to Go” brings whimsy to an environmental threat we don’t like to think about: human waste.

Narrated by Richard Gere and subtitled in 23 languages,

Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops is a series of five short films, featuring twelve leading climate scientists, that explores how human-caused emissions are triggering nature’s own warming loops.

The film series had its official launch with the Dalai Lama, Greta Thunberg, and world-renowned scientists in a webcast, “The Dalai Lama with Greta Thunberg and Leading Scientists: A Conversation on the Crisis of Climate Feedback Loops.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9GXgOMMeTg

While scientists stay up worrying about this most dangerous aspect of climate change, the public has little awareness or understanding of feedback loops. Climate change discussion at all levels of society largely leaves out the most critical dynamic of climate change itself. It is urgent we remedy this.

The first film in the series, Introduction (13:09), provides an overview of the feedback loop problem. The four other short films explore important climate feedback mechanisms: Forests (14:10), Permafrost (10:55), Atmosphere (8:45), and Albedo (10:35).

Greenhouse gases from fossil fuels, such as carbon dioxide and methane, are warming the planet. This warming is then setting in motion dozens of feedback mechanisms, which then feed upon themselves, as well as interact with each other and spiral further out of control. These processes are rapidly accelerating climate change.

An example of a climate feedback loop is the melting of the permafrost. In the Northern Hemisphere, permafrost makes up nearly 25% of the landmass. As heat-trapping emissions warm the Earth, this frozen tundra is melting. As it does, large amounts of carbon dioxide and methane are released, which further warm the planet, melting more permafrost in a self-perpetuating loop.

Human activity kicks off these feedback loops, but once set in motion, they become self-sustaining. The danger is that this process reaches a tipping point beyond which it is extremely difficult to recover. This is why it is urgent to reduce greenhouse gas emissions so we can slow, halt and even reverse these feedbacks and cool the planet.

Climate and global warming are mental health crises, and our children are among the most vulnerable.

The Common Thread project joins global filmmakers speaking with children worldwide about their concerns for the planet and future ...

These children and filmmakers are not celebrities or activists, but they have a Common Thread ... They all want a sustainable and livable planet and future for their generation.

Thanks to all contributing global filmmakers, their commitment to this film, and for sharing this journey with me.

My sincere gratitude,

Filmmaker, Director, and Producer
Frank Fazzio

In this short documentary, Gen Z'ers from around the globe talk about how climate change affects their mental health, life choices, & their visions for the future. The Gen Z'ers featured in this documentary are climate ambassadors in their community, fighting against the government for their rights and finding joy through community action.

They deal with the duality of feeling young and sometimes powerless, whilst being empowered by community action and the chance for real change. These young people share about their tools for emotional resilience in the face of climate change and the power of stories to deal with climate anxiety.

A personal dive into the world’s most impersonal substance: plastics. Amid the lockdown, a bereaved mother unfolds a surprising journey within and across oceans to understand the contemporary landscape of single-use synthetics. From the noble intentions behind its invention to scales of havoc it has wrought, this experimental documentary brings together art, history, science, and the everyday. Playfully crafted with hand-drawn illustrations and poetic interludes, this evocative “pause between deep time and no time” will change how you think about this ordinary “thing without thingness.”

A group of kids question who they are. The film follows a transgender boy who deals with cyber bullying, as straight, gay, non-binary and trans kids explore their gender and pronouns, discovering the true value of friendship and support.

This film was made in collaboration with middle and high school aged LGBTQ+ youth, to tell their stories for social change.

Two British artists: the lesbian portrait painter Sadie Lee and the non-binary writer Libro Levi Bridgeman happen to have been born on the same day. They meet to collaborate on a portrait of Libro and discuss their lives from the 1980s onwards. Now, after 3 years, Sadie is ready to uncover the painting. This short documentary follows Sadie and Libro's friendship and the collaboration's surprising reveal. The portrait is a first for art, important for queer politics and sensational to see. Showing a queerer side of queer we've never seen before.

The story of Donna Hylton and her social justice non profit "A Little Piece of Light" which uses her experience in the prison system to support reform and reentry of other black women and LGBTQ+

Sanni (21), who engages in Extinction Rebellion (Elokapina) civil disobedience, has given up her job to save the world from a climate catastrophe. Quick-witted Eltti (18) combines queer and environmental activism and uses it as fuel in their performances. Although Sanni and Eltti pursue the common good, the task of the activist is heavy, and neither the authorities nor all citizens seem to understand their good goals.

The themes of the film are civil disobedience, the activist's trauma and the role of the authorities as the protector of society in Finland that is said to be the world’s safest country and country that has one of the most trusted police force in the world. What feelings does the activist have to go through in the action and who should the officials eventually protect and from whom?

The summer and autumn rebellions in the film were one of the biggest media events of the 2021 in Finland, in the country where the demonstration culture has traditionally been very restrained and authorities used to be deeply respected. The film paints a hopeful and sympathetic picture of awake contemporary youth who are ready to fight the climate crisis, even by resolutely breaking the law.

He was not the remote genius of present day myth. Still A Revolutionary - Albert Einstein, tells the real story of his life long firebrand activism.

Anoush, an emigrant, who fled post-soviet Armenia from her abusive husband, is facing eventual deportation years later...

Aram Amatuni is a retired special forces spy who has devoted his entire life to serving and protecting his country and to creating a lawful government. His son, Gnel, is a successful businessman who to this day hasn’t forgiven his father for putting the needs of his country before the needs of his own family. This conflict between father and son reaches its climax when Amatuni’s grandson, a talented violinist who has the opportunity to study in one of the best European music academies, inspired by his grandfather’s ideology goes against his own father’s wishes and enlists in the mandatory military service. The unexpected war further severs the father-son relationship, leading Amatuni to take a road of no return.

Ilan, a fifty-two-year-old visual artist, takes his family on a musical road trip to reconstruct the
chaotic, creative life and tragic death of his father, Beno Lieberman, a pioneer of folklore research in Mexico. Confronting the mystery and pain behind Beno’s suicide, Ilan comes to terms with his feelings about his father by opening up to his children and sharing Beno’s enduring musical legacy.

Scenes of ground-breaking subversive poetry, radical music and activism that started more than 50 years ago in small cafes in New York City and went on to help change the political and social nature of the US. are interwoven with current - and important - scenes of today's contemporary poets, protest singers, and activists who are using their work for social change. Filled with appearances of iconic legends, this documentary celebrates creativity, protest, and original ways to fight conformity.