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Species: Homo conscious Website: www.11thhouraction.com http://wip.warnerbros.com/11thhour YouTube - The 11th Hour
The 11th Hour Synopsis
In the history of the planet, humanity's time on earth has been short but powerful. The human drive to ensure its own survival and quality of life has revolutionized industry, science, nutrition and medicine. But it has also effected unprecedented changes in the delicate balance that makes life on earth possible. Shaped by oceans and rainforests that generate oxygen, absorb carbon dioxide, govern climate, weather and temperature, the planet earth is under siege. The alchemy of natural greenhouse gases that enables life has been augmented with chemicals from tail pipes and smoke stacks. For every truckload of product produced, many more truckloads of waste are created. The oceans have been flooded with mercury, heavy metals, and toxic chemicals. The forests are disappearing, deserts are widening, the arctic sea ice is melting, the permafrost has begun to crack. The earth has grown warmer. Not since a meteor hit the planet 55 million years ago have so many forms of life gone extinct.
Leonardo DiCaprio
In 1998, he started the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, followed by LeonardoDiCaprio.org, which foster awareness of environmental issues. The Foundation places particular emphasis on the issues of global warming, alternative and renewable energy sources and the preservation of the planet's biodiversity. DiCaprio has supported non-profit organizations such as the Dian Fossey Foundation, Reef Check, Oceana, Santa Monica's Heal The Bay, the U'wa Defense Project and TreePeople. In 2000, DiCaprio chaired the national Earth Day celebration. During ABC's "20/20" special on Earth Day, DiCaprio interviewed President Clinton to address the issues surrounding global warming and the environment. Together, they discussed policies and steps that the administration could take to encourage Americans and US oil companies to adopt greener practices. Believing that education is critical to making changes, DiCaprio teamed up with NRDC in 2004 to build the e-Activism Zone in Santa Monica, aimed at educating young people and inspiring them to make a lifelong commitment to the environment. DiCaprio, along with Norman Lear's campaign "Declare Yourself" and Diddy's "Citizen Change, Vote or Die" campaign, criss-crossed the U.S.A., visiting college campuses and encouraging young people to register to vote.
Filmmakers involved includes Leila Conners Petersen, Nadia Conners, Brian Gerber, Chuck Castleberry, Adam Lewis, Pierre André Senizergues, Irmelin DiCaprio, Pietro Scalia, Luis Alvarez y Alvarez, Eric Avery, Kent Nagano, Stephan McGuire and Jean-Pascal Beintus amongst a many individuals who contributed to this film.
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Drought. Famine. Severe flooding. Record rainfall. Hurricanes. Acid rain. The highest average temperatures in recorded history. Catastrophe is reported on the nightly news as isolated incidents. But are these incidents isolated, or pieces of a larger global puzzle that could unlock humanity's future?
But are these changes to the earth permanent? Or are they puzzle pieces that, if connected, reveal a larger story that needs to be told; a human story that takes into account who we are and the state of our relationship to this planet, our only home. We are in an environmental age whether we like it or not.
Narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, written and directed by Leila Conners Petersen and Nadia Conners. The 11th Hour is produced by Chuck Castleberry, Brian Gerber, Conners Petersen and DiCaprio. The 11th Hour describes the last moment when change is possible. The film explores how humanity has arrived at this moment; how we live, how we impact the earth's ecosystems, and what we can do to change our course. The film features dialogues with experts from all over the world, including former Soviet Prime Minister Mikhail Gorbachev, renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, former head of the CIA R. James Woolsey and sustainable design experts William McDonough and Bruce Mau in addition to over 50 leading scientists, thinkers and leaders who present the facts and discuss the most important issues that face our planet.
Leonardo DiCaprio has been passionate about the environment since he was a child. Currently serving on the boards of both National Resources Defense Council and Global Green USA, he campaigns for changes in environmental policy and educates the public on the issues of global warming.
Combining both his passions, DiCaprio narrated two short environmental films, entitled "Global Warning" in 2003 and "Water Planet" in 2005. Most recently, he teamed up with Tree Media to produce and narrate "The 11th Hour," a feature-length documentary about the human impact on our planet, which is an official selection at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2007.
