Annie Leonard, the activist behind the short film “The Story of Stuff,” comes to Elon University for an April 22 evening lecture on the costs associated with the nation’s consumer-driven culture. Leonard’s appearance in McKinnon Hall, which is free and open to the public, coincides with Earth Day 2010.
Leonard has spent 10 years traveling the globe fighting environmental threats. She narrates the film with a rapid, often humorous and always engaging story about “all our stuff – where it comes from and where it goes when we throw it away.”
Leonard examines the real costs of extraction, production, distribution, consumption and disposal, and she isolates the moment in history where she says the trend of consumption mania began. “The Story of Stuff” examines how economic policies of the post-World War II era ushered in notions of “planned obsolescence” and “perceived obsolescence” and how these notions are still driving much of the U.S. and global economies today.
The talk begins at 7:30 p.m. To watch the movie, visit Leonard’s web site, http://www.storyofstuff.com.
Leonard’s recent book, The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession With Stuff Is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities, and Our Health-and a Vision for Change, will be available for purchase, and she will be available for signing after her talk. Leonard has also developed “The Story of Cap and Trade,” “The Story of Bottled Water,” and she is working on “The Story of Electronics.”
An expert in international sustainability and environmental health issues, with more than 20 years of experience investigating factories and dumps around the world, Leonard completed her undergraduate studies at Barnard College, Columbia University and graduate work in city and regional planning at Cornell University.
She has traveled to over 30 countries, including Haiti, Bangladesh, India, the Philippines, Pakistan and South Africa, in her work investigating and promoting anti-pollution issues internationally.
Sponsored by the Office of Sustainability; the Center for Environmental Studies, General Studies and the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life