See This Important Film for Free

One man takes on City Hall, Wall Street, presidents and prime ministers, as he questions society’s most fundamental beliefs about prosperity.

It’s extraordinarily rare for me to pat myself on the back here at Growth Bias Busted for some of my own media work. But, hey, narcissism seems to be in vogue these days, so what the heck? If you’ve not heard of or seen the documentary, GrowthBusters: Hooked on Growth, it is time to remedy that. As it happens, I have the cure:

Free 10-Day Online Screening of GrowthBusters

GrowthBusters turns the world upside down and shakes it to see what makes it tick. What I found was very troubling. There is a religion in the world bigger and more powerful than Christianity, Hinduism and Islam combined. It is the church of growth everlasting, and our worship of growth – if left unchecked – will be our downfall.

“This could be the most important film ever made. It tackles the three lethal taboos that threaten our civilization, those against discussing overpopulation, overconsumption, and the nonsensical idea that economic growth itself is a net benefit even in rich countries and can and must continue forever.”
– Paul Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb

This 54-minute film explores the forces that fuel our society’s growth addiction. And, while it doesn’t star Meryl Streep or Harrison Ford, Daryl Hannah or Leonardo DiCaprio, or even Robert Redford, it does feature some of the world’s leading thinkers on the subject of sustainability, and it tells a bit of a David vs. Goliath story.

The thought leaders interviewed in the film include Dennis Meadows (he led the famous MIT Limits to Growth study), Al Bartlett, Bill McKibben (350.org), Jerry Mander (founder of the International Forum on Globalization), Juliet Schor (author of Plenitude), Bill Rees (co-originator of ecological footprint analysis), Herman Daly (former World Bank senior economist), Peter Victor (author of Managing Without Growth), Bill Ryerson (President of Population Media Center), Sarah Susanka (author of The Not So Big Life) and several others.

As for the David vs. Goliath story, the film chronicles my own adventures as a growthbuster in my community. Chief among them was a campaign for city council in 2009, on a very in-your-face platform: “Growth is the cause of our problems; it can’t be the solution.” Was I elected, with such a bold campaign? You’ll have to see the movie; no spoiler here.

“This is the great untold story about growth and your community — the one many developers and land speculators don’t want you to hear…. Here’s your ticket to getting off the ‘endless growth’ treadmill and onto the sustainable communities train.”
– Eben Fodor, author of Better, Not Bigger

One can order a DVD or buy or rent a digital download of GrowthBusters at any time, but from November 23 – December 2 I’ve arranged for you to see it free. Get your free pass here.

“It was so powerful it felt like a virtual punch in the stomach.”
– Ed Hartman, author of The Population Fix

If you agree with Paul Ehrlich that this film is vitally important, this 10-day free screening period is the perfect opportunity to encourage viewing by others – friends, family, clergy, professors, elected officials, journalists. After December 2 you’ll have to order several DVDs to loan out to these folks. So why not just share the free pass link with them now?

The better we understand our growth addiction, the less power it will have over us.

FILM HONORS:
Best Film or Miniseries, Global Media Awards, Population Institute
Cinema Verité Award, Cinema Verde Environmental Film & Arts Festival (Florida)
Official Selection, SOHO International Film Festival (New York City)
Best Colorado Feature, Indie Spirit Film Festival (Colorado)
Nominated Best Feature Film and Best Science Communication Film, Reel Earth Film Festival (New Zealand)
Official Selection, Cosmic Cine Festival (Germany)
Official Selection, Awareness Film Festival (Los Angeles)
Official Selection, Urban Nomads Film Festival (Taiwan)
Official Selection, International Freethought Film Festival (Denver)
Official Selection, World Community Film Festival (British Columbia)
Official Selection, Film for Change Film Festival (Cape Town)
Official Selection, Denver Indie Fest

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