Written by Daryll Williams

There’s a particularly harrowing sequence at the beginning of Kiss The Ground, a fascinating documentary on the powers of the Earth’s soil in the fight against climate change, where a farmer walks in silence around his empty, parched land. Its arid lifelessness very much symbolising the old man’s weariness and despair. Graphics show the fast disappearing greenery in the world, to ominous music. This instructive sequence serves as a stark reminder of the grip climate change continues to hold on our planet. And it's not long before the documentary delves into the viabilities and promises a revelatory solution in rethinking modern agriculture through real-life accounts of regenerative ranchers and conservationists.

In preparation for Earth Day on April 22nd, we’re delving into stories about how to best aid our planet. Let’s dig in! 🌍

April’s Binge: Kiss The Ground

“Soil contains a universe of life.”

Directed by Josh Tickell and Rebecca Harrell Tickell, and narrated by actor and environmental activist Woody Harrelson, Kiss The Ground traces the history of mankind’s relationship with the Earth and its dependence on soil for sustenance. It triumphantly presents an effective means to mitigate the pressing crisis of climate change by offering an unwavering focus on this primal and intimate relationship between man and earth, that has gradually grown exploitative.

The sustainability factor

Overall: 4/5

The film begins by painting a dire picture of the present situation, with narrator Woody Harrelson expressing his doubts about the future. The film, however, is actually quite optimistic - proposing that existing solutions can not only halt climate change but reverse some of its effects.

There are small things we can do as individuals: eating a more plant-based diet, composting, and applying the bigger principles to our own small gardens. But the big sell is regenerative agriculture, which offers an economically viable cycle of healthy soil, plants, water, and skies, in stark contrast to the vicious cycle of industrial agriculture, which relies on additives, pesticides, and government subsidies, and depletes the land at unsustainable levels.

The Viatu review

Themes:

Regenerative agriculture can be applied anywhere in the world and reverse the effects of desertification through crop diversity, planned livestock grazing, and biosequestration — the process of capturing and storing carbon in plants, microbes, and other organisms. Zimbabwean ecologist and farmer Allan Savory reports that using livestock to reverse desertification is scalable to two-thirds of Earth’s land at an extremely low cost.

According to scientists, soil experts, and activists, drawing down atmospheric carbon to replenish the Earth is possible right now. But in the same way renewable energy faces opposition from fossil fuel lobbyists and politicians, regenerative agriculture is blocked by Big Agriculture. Soil scientist Ray Archuleta and rancher Gabe Brown both travel extensively, aiming to vouch for these practices but run into farmers who are resistant to change and getting them on board becomes a social problem and an education issue.

Production:

Celebrities such as Gisele Bündchen, husband Tom Brady, Jason Mraz, Ian Somerhalder, Patricia Arquette, David Arquette, and Rosario Dawson add their voices to the film. All get their hands dirty and bring real passion, but it’s the experts that have the most impact. What’s more, the science is explained in simple terms with plenty of visually striking graphics and animation.

What makes it different: 

Though much of the documentary gets obscured by repetitive filmmaking techniques and many eco-conscious celebrity cameos, at its heart is a “simple solution” to the climate crisis that centres on reinvigorating our depleted soil.

April’s Netflix & Change is about what we can do right now, and how those actions can be scaled into comprehensive overhaul. It’s a great reminder that every individual can be held responsible in the fight against climate change. Who knows, in a few decades you may literally be thanking the ground you walk on for saving the planet.

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