“Common Ground,” a documentary film on regenerative agriculture, is showing Nov. 24-30 at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center.
“‘Common Ground’ provides hope for future generations with concrete ways to fix a broken planetary system,” Charles Francis, University of Nebraska–Lincoln professor emeritus in agronomy and horticulture, said. “The film explores how regenerative agriculture can help heal the soil, our health and the planet.”
A special screening of this movie will take place at 1:30 p.m. Nov. 26 and a discussion led by Francis will follow. He and additional panelists from the farm and agricultural community will talk about the movie and regenerative agriculture, and the audience will have the opportunity to ask questions from the panel.
The movie will be shown in the Ross’ large, 190-capacity theatre and has a run time of one hour, 45 minutes. Tickets are available through the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center website.
Regenerative agriculture is a holistic approach to farming that focuses on improving the health and vitality of the land. Unlike conventional farming, which often relies on chemical fertilizers, pesticides and monoculture cropping systems, regenerative agriculture is a way to restore and enhance the natural processes of the ecosystem. It emphasizes practices that increase soil organic matter, promote biodiversity, and reduce or eliminate the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Allowing the soil to become alive with microorganisms and fungi will aid in making the land more fertile and help produce higher yields.
“Common Ground” is the sequel to the documentary, “Kiss the Ground” by filmmakers Josh and Rebecca Tickell, which touched over one billion people globally and inspired the United States Department of Agriculture to put $20 billion toward soil health.
Audiences will note the film’s narration by well-known performers Laura Dern, Jason Momoa, Rosario Dawson, Ian Somerhalder, Woody Harrelson and Donald Glover.
“This is a solution-driven movement that describes how we can all find our common ground to solve current challenges in conventional agriculture,” Francis said.
This screening is made possible by Friends of The Ross. Regular admission tickets apply to this screening. Go to the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center website.
