Why Did We Make this Film?

My first encounter with Diana Beresford-Kroeger was a radio interview I happened upon while running errands one morning. I had never heard anyone talk about trees in the way she did. She shone a light on the value of each tree and the way that she spoke about forests opened my mind to ideas that I had never explored. Diana speaks about  the value of our global forest and the urgent need for a movement to protect this incredible ecosystem with hope and compassion.

When I brought this to my co-producer, Merit Jensen Carr, she laughed and said, "I just optioned her book, The Global Forest!" - To our astonishment, we had both made the decision to tell her story independently. We knew then that we had to make this film. 

calloftheforest.ca

How Will We Use Your Donation?

We are seeking $45,000 in contributions. This will support educational materials and the launch of our community outreach initiatives in Canada and the USA starting March 2017.  Help us share the message: we need to save the last great forest on earth.

Your support will:

30% Outreach & Travel, 30% Personnel, 22% Education, 10% Perks, 8% Indiegogo fees

• Pay for resources like student workbooks and teacher guides to help educators make use of the film as an educational tool. Canadian Geographic is partnering with us to help develop these resources and deliver them to educators across the country. (22% of total)
• Help Diana and Jeff take the film on the road. We need to get the message out - and in order to do that we need to share the film with communities across the country. Outreach, distribution, and publicity are costly. Your support will pay for a small portion of the funds required to help us apply to festivals, work with community partners, and create events to share the film. (Outreach & travel 30%, personnel 30%)
• As our mission progresses we will let you know about the impact of our efforts and we will be seeking aid to take the film to our global audience. 

And in return you will receive:

• Our very genuine thanks and the satisfaction of contributing to a global initiative to combat deforestation and climate change.
• We will release special updates with exclusive out takes, tips from Diana’s garden and other goodies to funders along with your selected perk.
• Perks ranging from early bird special preview DVDs (with over 90 minutes of incredible extras), and beautiful artwork from the film, to sassy t-shirts. For true gardening enthusiasts Diana has generously offered a special tour of her garden at the height of its spring glory. Take a look at the list and pick the perk that is most meaningful for you.
• One for the Boreal includes a limited release early bird copy of the Call of the Forest DVD, signed by the director and we will deliver it in time for Christmas! 

• Our gorgeous theatrical poster is 27" x 39" and will make any space feel like a forest.

• The Ogham Script poster is based on the artwork seen in the film. This limited edition poster illustrates the ancient connection between trees and Irish language and culture.

• The 'Caution: Tree Hugging Hope Monger' T-Shirt will be modeled on the shirt that Jeff and his wife Dodie made for Diana while filming - and will be available in a variety of sizes.

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The Impact

“It will start with a shovel and an acorn, and we might just change the world.”
- Diana Beresford-Kroeger

Some important forest conservation facts:

• 95% of the world's old growth forests are gone.
• We are losing 200 square kilometres of forest each day.
• 33% of the global forest is boreal forest.
• The boreal is the largest remaining old growth forest on the planet.
• About 13 million hectares – an area roughly equivalent to the size of Greece – of the world’s forests are cut down and converted to other land uses every year.
• The world lost about 3 per cent of its forests in the period 1990 to 2005.
• Carbon levels in the atmosphere have exceeded 404 ppm!
• The boreal forest stores enormous quantities of carbon, possibly more than the temperate and tropical forests combined, much of it in peatland.
• Canada's boreal forest alone stores the equivalent of more than 20 years worth of the world's emissions from the burning of fossil fuels.
• We need to act now.

The Film

'Call of the Forest' is a feature length documentary that investigates the northern forests of the world. In the film Diana explores our profound biological and spiritual connection to trees. From the sacred sugi and cedar trees of Japan to the great boreal forest of Canada, Diana shares the amazing legacy of these ancient forests while explaining the science of trees and the irreplaceable roles they play in protecting and feeding the planet.

Woodlands are the beating heart of our ecosystem and Diana’s call to action - to protect the boreal forest and to plant 1 tree a year for the next 6 years in order to restore our climate - provides us with a simple and powerful solution for climate change.

Diana reminds us that when we improve our profound human connection to woodlands we can, not only, restore our health - we can restore our planet. 

We need your help to get the message out!

The film is complete and we are now working on our grass roots distribution strategy. Diana's message of conservation and forest restoration will only succeed if we can convince enough people to join in. 

We are working with Canadian Geographic to provide educators with the tools to teach our children about ecosystems, conservation and climate change. And to share the beauty and wonder of the natural world!

We are working with environmentalists and non-profit groups to bring the film to communities across the country. By organizing screenings with discussion panels and other events, we hope to engage people in conservation efforts and tree planting events that are relevant to their own communities.

Climate change is a complex problem and we acknowledge that simply planting trees is not enough. Through the film we hope to educate people about the profound importance of old growth forests, biodiversity, and the incredible interplay of ecosystems and human culture. By sharing this film with the world and supporting education and outreach initiatives you will have an active role in:

• Protecting the Global Forest.
• Protecting the Boreal Forest – the last functioning old growth forest system on the planet and our best defense against climate change.
• Sharing the message about the incredible work of indigenous communities as stewards and protectors of the land.
• Educating communities about the value of: urban forests, green spaces, planting native species, forest conservation, and our profound historical & biological connection to trees.
• Encouraging participation in global tree planting initiatives for groups like Earth Day, Tree Canada, Arbor Day, UNEP, and regional conservation initiatives.
• Encouraging everyone on the planet to plant native species trees!
• Helping us get the message out to communities across the continent!

Risks & Challenges

In order to achieve success we need to share this story with as many people as possible and you are the key to our success. If we can encourage more people to plant trees and care for forests we can actually alter our current trend of global warming.

• We don’t have the financial resources to organize community outreach activities or to publicize & distribute this film through traditional theatrical release - so we are taking the film to the people.
• We are planning to start small and create a model for sharing the film through events and educational tools. Our hope is that others will take up the call and offer to host or sponsor similar events in communities around the world.
• We hear from communities and caring individuals everyday, wondering how they can support the message of the film and it hasn't even launched yet! We know you are out there and we have the tool. We just need some financial resources to start building a movement for change.

Other Ways You Can Help Save Our Global Forest

This is a film about how you can make a difference in your own yards, parks, and school grounds and we hope that you will take up the call and join our fight for the global forest.

Not everyone can support us with a contribution – There are so many other ways that you can help!

• Ask your friends and family to get involved by sharing our campaign.
• Make the #plantatree pledge and share via social media: I pledge to plant one native tree a year for 6 years to #saveourforests. Join me at calloftheforest.ca! Combat climate change now!
• or visit the link to automatically generate your pledge: http://calloftheforest.ca/take-action/#share-se...
• Go to our website at calloftheforest.ca  to find out more about our project and visit our plant-a-tree app.
• Use the Indiegogo share tools to pass on our message and our video!

Thank you for sharing the Call of the Forest!

This film is an Edgeland Films & Merit Motion Pictures Production. Connect to our producer's websites to explore their catalogue's of great science, nature, and environmental films. 

http://meritmotionpictures.com/
http://edgelandfilms.com/

Diana Beresford-Kroeger

Diana Beresford-Kroeger is an award-winning, world recognized author, medical biochemist and botanist.  She has a unique combination of western scientific knowledge and the traditional concepts of the ancient world. Orphaned in Ireland in her youth, Beresford-Kroeger was educated by elders who instructed her in the Brehon knowledge of plants and nature.

Her Bioplan is an ambitious plan encouraging ordinary people to develop a new relationship with nature, to join together to replant the global forest.  Her books include “The Sweetness of a Simple Life”, “The Global Forest”, “Arboretum Borealis”, “Arboretum America”, and “A Garden for Life”.  Diana Beresford-Kroeger was inducted as a Wings Worldquest fellow in 2010, she was elected as a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society in 2011. More recently, in 2016, the Society named her one of 25 top women explorers of Canada. In addition, in 2011 she was named one of Utne Reader’s World Visionaries.

“CALL OF THE FOREST is a film of rare significance. It draws the viewer into the green world that sustains life on this planet at a crucial ecological point, and is an introduction to the work of Diana Beresford-Kroeger, one of the least known but most important people on the planet.”

- Annie Proulx, Award-­winning author of 'The Shipping News', 'Brokeback Mountain' and 'Barkskins'.