The Great Squeeze: Surviving the Human Project

Joining the growing chorus of documentaries that foresee a coming environmental doomsday, Chris Fauchere's The Great Squeeze raises serious questions about the long-term viability of civilization as we know it. Over the past 200 years, an increasing reliance upon cheap fossil fuels and unrestricted consumption has spurred a myriad of global environmental problems, which will only increase exponentially as large developing nations such as China and India adopt lifestyles mirroring American society. Stitching together interviews and presentations from a distinguished roster of authors, experts, scholars, and scientists, this documentary looks at a wide range of complex issues, including climate change, population growth, species extinction, polluted oceans, and diminishing natural resources. Civilizations of the past—for example, the Mayans on the Yucatan Peninsula and the Anasazi in Chaco Canyon—collapsed because the people ignored or were unable to adapt to environmental crises. Humanity now faces a similar dilemma: either we adjust to a sustainable economy that fits available resources, or we continue to rely upon an imbalanced economic model that will eventually destroy much of the natural world. One novel solution proposed here is to establish a government-sponsored new “Apollo Project” that would launch the innovation necessary to transition the United States to a “clean” economy in 10 years. DVD extras include extended interviews and the bonus documentary Greening in the Heartland. Sure to help strengthen awareness of an escalating situation, this is recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (J. Wadland)