Educational Media Reviews Online

At a time when ecological destruction has become ever more rampant and should be of concern for all people, Indigenous peoples around the world are battling to maintain control over what is left of their lands and stop the environmental devastation that directly impacts their communities. The Standing on Sacred Ground film series beautifully portrays the serene landscapes that are being grossly subjected to pollution and degradation around the world on Indigenous lands. The effects from mining, oil transportation, and other dangerous pollutants are vividly depicted so that the viewer understands how and why Mother Earth needs to be protected now before she can no longer support human life and its demands.

This series of four films – Pilgrims and Tourists, Profit and Loss, Fire and Ice, and Islands of Sanctuary – is narrated by Graham Greene (Oneida nation) and follows the struggles of eight Indigenous communities as they fight for control over what happens to the land in their territories. The viewer is taken through roughly four hours of documentary footage from the Russian Republic of Altai, the Winnemem Wintu in northern California, Papua New Guinea, the First Nations communities in Alberta, Canada, the Gamo Highlands of Ethiopia, the Q’eros in the Peruvian Andes, Native Hawaiians on the island of Kaho’olawe, and Aboriginal Australians in the northern part of the continent. While this film series interrogates Indigenous struggles from all over the world, these people all share the same goal of fighting against ecological destruction and loss and degradation of their traditional lands. Their traditional cultural values are often at odds with the modern demands of mainstream society, so it becomes a struggle to find balance between all parties. The so-called “comforts” of civilization are damaging the earth to the point that Indigenous peoples are being forced to assert the following questions: What is the price of progress? Why do ecosystems need to be destroyed in order for everyone to have clean water, sturdy shelter, and health clinics?

Standing on Sacred Ground does well to not only allow the voices and experiences of actual Indigenous peoples, scholars, and activists shine throughout the films, but also calls out to viewers asking them what they can do for the land so “the land can love them back.” This film series is thorough, critically engaging, inclusive, and very well produced. The eight case studies of Indigenous communities around the world offer the viewer a glimpse into the everyday lives of these people and can therefore be an excellent educational tool for students and activists of most ages. I highly recommend this film series for anyone who wants to learn about Indigenous cultures across the globe, as well as anyone who wants to fully understand how and why the earth is slowly being destroyed by the efforts of “progress,” along with what they can do to help reverse the process of ecological destruction.