Santa Fe Film Festival 2009

A Thousand Suns' tells the story of the Gamo Highlands of the African Rift Valley and the unique worldview held by the people of the region. This isolated area has remained remarkably intact both biologically and culturally. It is one of the most densely populated rural regions of Africa yet its people have been farming sustainably for 10,000 years. Shot in Ethiopia, New York and Kenya, the film explores two interrelated threats to the Gamo Highlands: 1) the evangelistic aspirations of the protestant church that are destroying the Gamo’s indigenous spirituality and governance systems; and 2) the efforts of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), a Western aid organization which is spending hundreds of millions of dollars bringing chemical pesticides, fertilizers and so-called improved seeds to the continent. Through these external forces we gain insight into the modern world’s untenable sense of separation from and superiority over nature. And we see how the interconnected worldview of the Gamo people is fundamental in achieving long-term sustainability, both in the region and beyond.