The BBC series on Global Warming
The BBC wants to talk to you, I was told. They are in the processing of producing a series on Global Warming and will be filming in Shanghai next week. They wanted to get a few commenthttps://www.antaeusmind.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=412&action=edit&classic-editor&classic-editor__forgets from me.
Several days later, I got a call from Jill Marshall the program’s producer. The first question she asked was, “Can Shanghai and other major coastal cities afford the cost of reducing man-made Global warming?” After my initial reaction of laughing out loud to the question I went on to say that we didn’t have a choice but to pay the price if we wanted to survive. I guess that she thought that my frankness might result in some usable sound bites and we made and appointment to meet for a hour to talk.
To make the story short that hour turned into me spending the entire week of filming with the crew. Part of the crew were local friends of mine and those from Britain were really nice … we all hit it off from the very start. In addition to wanting on film comments from me, they began asking for my advice on story line, filming locations and I even ended up writing much of the script. It was another fantastic experience. I hope that you will enjoy the resulting episode, “Counting the Costs” referenced below.
Counting the Cost
Highly recommend documentary series, Hot Cities, aired on BBC World News TV. It is an excellent eight-part series about the present effects of global warming in cities around the world. If you haven’t caught these segments on television, you can watch them on your computer. Each runs about 45 minutes.
The effects of dangerous climate change are already happening, and people everywhere are finding ways of dealing with the changes this is causing in their lives. Witness the courage, tenacity and ingenuity of people suffering from disease, heat and lack of water, as well as high winds. You are certain to be amazed and inspired.
Director’s Article
Counting the Cost, Shanghai, China
By Producer/Director Jill Marshall
Filming in Shanghai, China’s New York, is a mass of contradictions. Fabulous high rise buildings towering over poverty stricken shacks. Massive traffic jams when, whatever the weather, most of the population seemed to be racing along on bikes or scooters, frustrating petty officialdom alongside the exhilaration of filming in Shanghai’s parks which are bursting with people of all ages pursuing fun, low tech activities – from tai chi, group singing and every type of dancing, to massed groups playing maracas!
But contradictions are the essence of China. A country that is really 2 countries. One billion people still live in rural poverty, but the other 300 million live in cities and are reaping the benefits of China’s rapid industrialisation by adopting the consumerist lifestyles of the West. The result is that China’s greenhouse gas emissions have just overtaken those of the USA – between them the 2 countries produce about half of the world’s emissions. Shanghai, the symbol of China’s economic success is, ironically, one of the cities with most to lose if global warming cannot be contained. It could be submerged by rising sea levels.
Zhao Wen Guang works 10 hours a day, 7 days a week riding his tricycle round Shanghai buying and selling goods that can be recycled. He used to do farm work and part time teaching in a village 700 kilometres from Shanghai but moved to the city so he could afford a better education for his children. He thinks his work has value beyond making him a living. He aspires to own a car – but wants to get an electric one that has no exhaust fumes.
The Chinese Government needs the support of its citizens for the huge task ahead.
As Shanghai resident and Environmental consultant David Sutton, says “The simple fact is China cannot develop as the West has. We’d need three planets of resources to do that… We just cannot afford to not change, we must adapt or die.”
THIS EPISODE CAN BE SEEN AT: