“Garbage or Resource? A Dominican Republic Experience”, a short film produced by GFDD/Funglode directed by Ms. Natasha Despotovic, GFDD Executive Director, was screened to students of the Instituto Iberia in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. The screening took place at the historical educational center’s library on February 24th 2015, and also included a presentation of GFDD’s recycled art program ReCrearte by its Coordinator, Bertha Santana.

Mr. Victor Martinez, Director of Instituto Escuela, welcomed GFDD Staff to the center and with warm regards opened the event, followed with an introduction about the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) and GFDD’s short “Garbage or Resource? A Dominican Republic Experience”, by Maria Victoria Abreu, GFDD’s Socioeconomic Program Manager. After the screening and the presentation of ReCrearte, students and teachers were very proactive in a lively discussion on the importance of recycling to our planet’s sustainability and how to make it happen in our every day’s lives.

Approximately 85 high school students participated in this activity and were fascinated by topics related to the environment and entrepreneurship with a sustainable approach. They also showed a lot of interest in GFDD’s Globo Verde Dominicano Award, aiming to produce their own environmental audiovisual works to submit to it this year.

After the discussion, Instituto Iberia showed GFDD Staff members their own short video on a recent excursion to a poor community in the countryside where students and teachers helped improve an unfortunate house and interacted with natural resources.

This activity is part of GFDD Year Round Environmental Film Screenings under the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) initiative. This year DREFF will take place September 8-13 in fourteen cities of the Dominican Republic.

Participants Travel a Total of 60 Kilometers During Five Days in the Heart of the Dominican Cordillera Central as part of the program RDescubre

The 12th Educational Expedition to Pico Duarte, part of the initiatives of the RDescubre program, was successfully held when 90 students from various schools in the Dominican Republic had the opportunity to climb Pico Duarte, the highest mountain in the Caribbean. The event, organized by Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (Funglode) in collaboration with Siempre Más Foundation, took place from February 18^th to the 22^nd.

The alpinist Karim Mella, President of Siempre Más Foundation, coordinated the expedition, which was also supported by twelve team members of Siempre Más, as well as students from past expeditions, which have been identified by their leadership attributes.

As part of the event, participants of the Politécnico Ann & Ted Kheel of Verón, La Altagracia; Politécnico Femenino Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes, and Liceo Hermano Miguel, Santiago, made various environmental activities including a cleanup in the Tetero Valley, where they removed about 300 pounds of waste, with the help of the mules of the expedition.

Students developed several presentations for their schools, where they discussed the symbolic parallels between climbing Pico Duarte and their personal goals and achievements, among other environmental projects that they plan to do when they return from the trip. Students also received seminars by experts in environmental conservation from Armando Bermúdez National Park, this in order to create a greater understanding of the geography of the Cordillera, flora and fauna, climate, conservation environmental, forest fires and reforestation, among other topics.

Karim Mella, first Dominican to climb Mount Everest, explained that the expedition traveled a total of 60 kilometers in the heart of the Dominican mountain range, on a journey that took five days. Mella said that “the trail was quite difficult because it rained for two days, so the pathways of the journey became muddy”.

This initiative has been made possible by the support of GFDD and the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF), which sponsors several expeditions a year and organizes activities with the intention of bringing together participants and reinforce the values learned during the trip.

The Educational Expeditions to Pico Duarte reflect the overall mission of the DREFF to interact with leading figures in the environmental community by promoting the participation of young students and encouraging change. Since the first expedition on March 2012 hundreds of students across the country have had the opportunity to participate in this adventure that changes their lives.

More information www.dreff.org

Students from Haina and Boca Chica Enjoy the Documentary a Thirsty World

Delivering on its commitment to promoting sustainable development and environmental awareness, GFDD/Funglode, through the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival, showcased three screenings in different schools in the Dominican Republic of the film A Thirsty World, in collaboration with the Instituto de Derecho Ambiental de la República Dominicana (IDARD, by its Spanish acronym) and the EcoEscuelas program.  The screenings were held on Wednesday, February 18^th at the Instituto Politécnico of Haina and the Vitalina Mordán Cruz School in Boca Chica; and on the 19^that the Formerio Rodriguez School in Boca Chica.

Reydi Moreta, of the DREFF, and Alejandrina Matos, representing the EcoEscuelas program and the IDARD and Janeira Masiel of EcoEscuelas program as well, offered welcoming words in the different activities, where a large number of students had the opportunity to see the documentary, directed by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, that highlights the everyday harsh reality of people who live without access to water. Moreta took the opportunity to discuss the initiatives of GFDD and the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF), which this year takes place in the Dominican Republic from September 8 to 13.

The screening of these films is part of the DREFF Year-Round Environmental Film Screenings  Program, which aims to raise awareness in communities across the country on environmental and sustainable development issues through cinema. This project allows schools, universities, community centers, businesses, government agencies, and others, to screen some of the best films of the past editions of DREFF.

About EcoEscuelas
EcoEscuelas is an international environmental certification program for schools that develop programs and projects for education and participation, where children and friends of the school, following the methodology, are involve in the implementation of environmental improvements in the center and in the center. This program is administered worldwide by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE by its Spanish acronym).

More information: www.dominicanscreenings.org

Île-de-France, a region that is successfully achieving ecological and social transition to sustainable development, has just celebrated the thirty-second edition of the festival’s most important environmental films from France and one of the largest in Europe, Festival International du Film d’Environnement (FIFE by its French acronym). Team members of the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) traveled to France to participate in the prestigious event, which is also a meeting point of the festivals that are part of the Green Film Network  (GFN), a worldwide association to which the DREFF belongs since January 1st of this year.

During one week, from 3 to 10 February, the Director of the DREFF, Natasha Despotovic, and Director of Digital Media and Print Material, Semiramis de Miranda, participated in the event and in the meetings that GFN traditionally held during the festival. “FIFE is an excellent opportunity, not only to see some of the best productions of the year, but to generate contacts, exchange ideas and build networks with some of the most important environmental festivals in the world,” said Despotovic.

The DREFF networked with the Cinemambiente Festival of Torino, Solidarity Water Europe, Sublimages, Ecozine Film Festival Zaragoza, and Innsbruck Nature Film Festival, among other organizations.

FIFE presents documentaries, feature films, short films and web documentaries that address issues such as sustainable development, immigration, energy and social problems. Over 100 films representing 41 countries have been presented in this edition.

“Every year, for a week, FIFE becomes a place where the audience and professionals can exchange ideas and discuss with managers, experts and other persons participating in the festival,” explained the organizers.

Over the past three years, the event has organized meetings so professionals can share experiences and reflect on the various methods of production and distribution worldwide, in addition to allowing certain films find a distributor in France.

About DREFF

Since its inception in 2011, the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF), an initiative of Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD), provides the Dominican public a platform for knowledge and debate on the environment and sustainable development, their issues and best practices, while celebrating the beauty and unique wealth of the Dominican nature.

Through the screening of a diverse selection of the best films that deal with issues of major national and international relevance, and the organization of discussion panels, courses, seminars and field visits, the DREFF not only promotes dialogue but also inspires the Dominican public to take action to ensure the health and sustainability of the environment.

Partnering with some of the most important institutions in the field – including the Green Film Network (GFN) –, every September, during each of its editions, the DREFF organizes over 80 free screenings in 14 cities and nearly 30 venues throughout the Dominican Republic.

Honoring the commitment of Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) to contribute concretely to the sustainable development of the Dominican Republic and of the world, creating practical platforms for the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals, the DREFF has developed five programs operating throughout the year, working closely with the community: ReCrearte, EcoHuertos, RDescubre,  GloboVerde Dominicano Award and Year Round Environmental Film Screening.

Related links:

Festival International Du Film D’Environnement

To see the awards click here

Green Film Network

Registration is now open until July 24 in the official page of the competition: www.globoverdedominicano.org

The Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) will host the fourth edition of the first audiovisual competition in the area of environment and sustainable development in the Dominican Republic, the Globo Verde Dominicano Award. This year’s competition will include a special category for high school students: the Globo Verde Junior, which joins the Public Service Announcement, Short Film and Photography categories.

The Globo Verde Dominicano Award is a unique opportunity for filmmakers, students and young professionals who want to venture into a fairly uncharted area in the Dominican Republic -the creation of environmental audiovisual material- as well as to show their work to a national and international audience as part of each edition of the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival, which is held every September, and at other international festivals.

The competition, which began in 2012 with the categories of Short Film and Public Service Announcement, last year added a new category in the area of Photography. This year, with the aim of giving an opportunity to young people and to promote the use of new technologies, the Globo Verde Junior category, exclusively for high school students, will make its debut.

As in the previous edition of the competition, the Photography category will adhere to a theme that has been determined by the competition’s board of directors. In 2015, on the occasion of the 21st Conference on Climate Change organized by the United Nations, the theme is “Impact of Global Warming and Climate Change.” For more information and ideas on this topic please visit the DREFF blog.

In addition to cash prizes and equipment contestants will receive a lot of promotion for their works through all web pages related to the DREFF, as well as at film festivals around the world: Turning Our Backs to the Ocean, directed by Armando Larrauri and the winner in the 2012 competition, was presented at the Blue Ocean Film Festival and at the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital (EFF’s); Sebastian Cabrera, the winner in 2013 with his short film First Steps, was also present at the EFF’s and was part of a panel discussion on recycling in the Dominican Republic. The 2014 winner, Carlos García, director of Tomorrow, is preparing to present his short film this coming March at the same festival, the largest in Washington, DC, and one of the most important at the global level.

This year, the awards are:

• Short Film Category: Screening of the short film at an international environmental film festival + a certificate for $2,000 in technical equipment.
• Public Service Announcement Category: A 15-inch Macbook Pro laptop: 2.2 GHz, with retina display.
• Photography Category: A certificate for $1,000 in technical equipment.
• Globo Verde Junior Category: A certificate for $1,000 in technical equipment.

Entries participating in the Globo Verde Dominicano Award will be judged by a jury made of national and international professionals, which will be announced shortly. The winners of the competition will be announced in the framework of the 5th Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival, which will take place September 8-13, 2015.

Registration is officially open starting today and will remain open until July 24, 2015. The electronic registration form is available on the competition website at (www.globoverdedominicano.org) where the rules for each category can also be found. Those interested in obtaining additional information can submit their questions via social networks on Facebook and Twitter (@GloboVerdeDR), or via email at info@globoverdedominicano.org.

Since the inception of its Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival in 2011, Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) has created and developed five programs that run throughout the year and contribute significantly to the sustainable development in the Dominican Republic. They are: ReCrearte, EcoHuertos, RDescubre, Year-Round Environmental Film Screenings, and Globo Verde Dominicano. The DREFF is an initiative of Global Foundation for Democracy and Development.