"PSR 2014 Scholarship Essay Contest Finals" (71.5 minutes)
This year's Scholarship Essay Contest, sponsored by the Sacramento Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility, was recorded by a Media Edge crew on April 27, 2014 at the Dante Club in Sacramento. The winning essays were chosen from entries submitted by greater Sacramento area high school students that reacted to this year's prompt, a quotation from the late South African leader and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Nelson Mandela, who said, "Education is the most powerful weapon that you can use to change the world.” After the ten finalists read their essays and were questioned by a panel of local community leaders, the authors of the top three essays (as determined by the panel) earned $3,000, $2,500 and $2,000 scholarships, and the other seven each earned a $1,000 scholarship.
"The Story of Solutions" (9 minutes)
The Story of Solutions, released in October 2013, explores how we can move our economy in a more sustainable and just direction, starting with orienting ourselves toward a new goal. In the current ‘Game of More’, we’re told to cheer a growing economy – more roads, more malls, more Stuff! – even though our health indicators are worsening, income inequality is growing and polar icecaps are melting. But what if we changed the point of the game? What if the goal of our economy wasn’t more, but better – better health, better jobs and a better chance to survive on the planet? Shouldn’t that be what winning means?
"The Story of Broke" (8 minutes)
The United States isn’t broke; we’re the richest country on the planet and a country in which the richest among us are doing exceptionally well. But the truth is, our economy is broken, producing more pollution, greenhouse gasses and garbage than any other country. In these and so many other ways, it just isn’t working. But rather than invest in something better, we continue to keep this ‘dinosaur economy’ on life support with hundreds of billions of dollars of our tax money. The Story of Broke calls for a shift in government spending toward investments in clean, green solutions -- renewable energy, safer chemicals and materials, zero waste and more -- that can deliver jobs AND a healthier environment. It’s time to rebuild the American Dream; but this time, let’s build it better.
"Eating Mercifully" (26 minutes)
This short film from the Humane Society of the United States explores Christian perspectives on factory farming. A growing number of Christians are changing their diet and consumer purchases because the way animals are treated in factory farms is inconsistent with their beliefs. Some are demanding better treatment of farm animals, while some are simply leaving animals off their plates altogether.
