Waking the Green Tiger tells the dramatic story of the rise of
the first major grassroots environmental movement in China, a
significant development that could reshape the country.
Seen through
the eyes of farmers, journalists, activists and a former government
insider, the film traces the historical evolution of the movement and
highlights an extraordinary campaign to stop a huge dam project slated
for the Upper Yangtze River in southern China.
Featuring archival
footage never seen outside China, and interviews with insiders and
witnesses, the documentary also portrays the earlier history of Chairman
Mao's campaigns to conquer nature in the name of progress. Mao
mobilized millions of people in campaigns that reshaped China's
landscape, destroyed lakes, forests and grasslands, and unleashed dust
storms. Despite the evident consequences, critics of this approach were
silenced for decades.
The green movement emerged when a new
environmental impact law was passed in 2004. For the first time in
China's history, ordinary citizens gained the right to speak out and
take part in government decisions. Green activism grew into a larger
movement as local villagers and urban activists joined forces to oppose
a massive new dam at Tiger Leaping Gorge on the Upper Yangtze that
would have displaced 100,000 people. Their extraordinary campaign is a
primary focus of the film.
Waking the Green Tiger also
gained unprecedented access to the former director of China's
Environmental Protection Agency, Qu Geping, whose years of work inside
the government laid the foundation for environmental protection in
China. Qu provides a candid look at the state of the environment in
China from Mao until now, and discusses how environmental law and the
green movement have a key role to play in the evolution of democracy in
China.
- English and Mandarin with English subtitles
- Includes Chinese language version (Mandarin and English with SC Chinese subtitles)
Preview link available upon request. Contact [email protected] for more information
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