allen-charmley highlights the groundwork being done by individuals and organizations like digdeep, a community-led initiative that strives to find solutions to providing water to the thousands who are without it everyday on the navajo nation. allen-charmley connects with the navajo water project as well as a student change maker to learn just how much tó éí iiná, or water is life. not only does this mini-documentary display the effects of climate change in rural parts of america, it also spotlights how lack of accessible water within indigenous communities can be especially detrimental during a pandemic.

special thanks to the navajo nation, digdeep and the planet forward team for making the production of this video possible

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correction: the lower third graphic which reads “jaden redshirt” should instead read “jaden redhair.”

editor’s note: this short film was produced as part of the planet forward-comcast nbcuniversal sustainable storytelling fellowship. 

they now form part of the food sovereignty movement, aiming to increase access to producing, consuming, and preserving cultural ties to vegetables and fruits.

while little research exists on the qtbipoc community specifically, separate data shows that 19% of the lgbt population and 16% of the latinx community in washington d.c was experiencing food insecurity in 2019. meanwhile, the average cost of a meal was $4.09, almost a dollar above the national average. the pandemic has only perpetuated existing structural problems, and the qtbipoc community lacks access to resources like food banks. in addition, these communities often experience discrimination, housing insecurity, and malnutrition, affecting their access to produce and consume healthy foods. 

“it’s not that we didn’t exist. it’s that misgendering happens. the cycle of violence promoted in urban agricultural spaces is rampant. we were just mad, and i said let’s do something about it,” niaupari explained. 

plantita power addresses food insecurity by providing resources and knowledge to grow microgreens. these sustainable plants thrive in urban areas and have small production needs, making them accessible for individuals experiencing housing insecurity or fearing discrimination in community gardens.

however, niaupari and the plantita power team face obstacles like access to soil and space. but they are motivated to empower and alleviate the barriers their community endures, so they create innovative ways to distribute seedlings and grow their presence.

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editor’s note: this short film was produced as part of the planet forward-comcast nbcuniversal sustainable storytelling fellowship. 

that’s what we focus on at planet forward — the ideas, inventions, and outrageously ambitious innovations needed to address our planetary challenges. we’re based at a university and we work with a 2022年世界杯亚洲预选赛结果 of schools — students and faculty alike — to research and tell stories that inform, inspire, and drive action.

today, i have the pleasure of announcing an important journey of collaboration: the planet forward-comcast nbcuniversal sustainable storytelling fellowship. with support from our friends at comcast nbcuniversal, we have selected three talented student storytellers who will report from the frontlines of sustainability. along with my colleagues, i will mentor and guide them. their mini-documentaries will be screened to an audience of academics, professionals, and in the fields of science and communication at the 2022 planet forward summit.

our storytelling fellows bring an exciting commitment, curiosity, and passion for storytelling to this remarkable opportunity. their stories will reflect their diversity and their depth and will focus on communities where sustainability is an urgent challenge. we are so grateful for comcast for making this journey of discovery possible.

i’m delighted to share with you the planet forward-comcast nbcuniversal sustainable storytelling fellows for the 2021-22 academic year:

• mckenzie allen-charmley, who is a rising senior majoring in broadcast journalism at arizona state university’s walter cronkite school of journalism and mass communication and minoring in business. she is an alaska native and black journalist from anchorage, alaska pursuing a career in broadcast journalism to inspire young native girls and to help create the foundation of a journalistic evolution that values representation, authenticity and accuracy above all else. her love of the environment began as a child, growing up living a subsistence lifestyle with her family members from her tribal village of eklutna. 

• jennifer cuyuch, who is a rising senior majoring in political communication at george washington university’s school of media and public affairs and minoring in photography and spanish. her passion for environmental studies started when she joined take back the tap, an organization aiming to raise awareness about water privatization, during her freshman year. she is also passionate about multimedia and latin american migration studies, as her parents migrated from peru and guatemala, and she aims to bring attention to the interconnections between climate change, migration and displacement through her work. 

• jelina liu, who is also a political communication student at george washington university’s school of media and public affairs. liu is a chinese-american filmmaker from the bay area. she has experience in both fictional and nonfiction storytelling, but now specializes in documentary filmmaking. she is also passionate about socioeconomic and environmental justice and has experience in grassroots organizing. this passion informs her work, as she aims to tell stories that will inspire people to take action. 

i look forward to working with the fellows as their stories unfold, and to sharing these stories with you, our community, in april.

in our latest episode of planet forward, seen on pbs’s peril and promise and produced in association with asu’s global futures laboratory, roker discusses his approach of effectively communicating the climate crisis to a general audience. you don’t have to be on national television to apply his strategies to your own interactions.

later in the episode, our youth correspondent, calvin bordas from suny college of environmental science and forestry, shares how he puts himself into the narrative and uses relatable humor to reach out to viewers.

edralin interviews leaders of the green bronx machine, an impact-driven organization based in the bronx that builds local food systems and empowers students to grow and consume their own healthy foods. crossing paths with the green bronx machine founder at a food sustainability summit in 2017, edralin reconnects with the green bronx machine team four years later to learn how the organization has addressed rising hunger rates and navigated a challenging learning environment, due to the pandemic.

want to learn more? watch her video above, and check out edralin’s story about the green bronx machine.

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special thanks to the planet forward team and heidi estrada for assisting with the filming and production of this video.

specifically, edralin wanted to focus on food insecurity within the context of covid-19. her piece profiled the green bronx machine, a nonprofit organization that seeks to build healthy, equitable, and resilient communities through inspired education, local food systems, and workforce development.

edralin had pitched the topic for her short documentary because she had crossed paths with the founder of the green bronx machine at a conference in milan, italy, years ago and decided to reach out to see how they were handling the covid-19 pandemic in their classrooms.

the process of completing this film took about two months. we had to reshoot a lot because of minor details we would notice after we’d reviewed our footage, so this process required us to pay close attention to detail — and utilize a lot of patience! however, looking back now, we’re glad we took our time with it.

there’s a lot more to creating a documentary than just picking up a camera; creating a documentary is an art form that has a long process, but the final product is worth the effort.