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Film & Discussion: Award-Winning Documentary, The Island President

When

Thursday September 19, 2013: 6:00pm to 8:30pm  Add to Calendar /   Add to Google Calendar

Where

Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

For Whom

Adults And Teens (Grade 9 And Up).

Description

This exquisitely filmed 2011 documentary, directed by Emmy-Award winner Jon Shenk, won the Toronto Film Festival's People’s Choice Award.

Capturing the beauty of the county that is the Maldives, it chronicles the first year of office of President Nasheed and his efforts to combat climate change. A post-film discussion, led by the U-M Community Scholars Program, will follow this 101-minute film, which is not rated.

In 2008 newly elected President Mohamed Nasheed was confronted with a problem greater than that of any other world leader - the survival of his country and everyone in it. The Maldives had ended thirty years of despotic rule, and the young democratic nation needed to find a way to deal with the imminent danger of increasingly elevated sea levels. As one of the most low-lying countries in the world, a rise of three feet would submerge the 1200 islands of the Maldives enough to make them uninhabitable.

The film follows Nasheed to the 2009 Copenhagen Climate Summit where he attempts every strategy - leveraging the Maldives underdog position; harnessing the power of the media; and overcoming deadlocks through an appeal to unity with other developing nations. Will he succeed?

This event is co-sponsored by the U-M Community Scholars' Program.

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