Educational Media Reviews Online

Despite having fertile and biodiverse land, Puerto Rico imports around 85% of its food and endures high food prices and levels of food insecurity. Extreme weather, exacerbated by climate change, is partially to blame for Puerto Rico’s farming troubles, but prospective farmers without significant funding also face bureaucratic challenges to acquire and keep land to farm. The film Stewards of the Land depicts three farmers and their efforts to use agroecological techniques to create organic and sustainable farms that can alleviate food troubles in rural areas, survive extreme weather, and also educate the next generation about the importance of revitalizing Puerto Rico’s agriculture and food sovereignty.

Viewers will learn about the benefits of agroecological farming as well as the unfortunate administrative hurdles that result in much of the fertile land being abandoned or exploited by large corporations for non-agricultural purposes. Ultimately, the film has a hopeful tone.

The film is well-made and is highly recommended for courses in agriculture, environmental studies, or Latin American studies. Although the film is in Spanish with English subtitles, the subtitles are legible.

Awards:
2023 Audience Choice Winner, Chicago Latino Film Festival; 2022 Best Feature Documentary, International Puerto Rican Heritage Film Festival

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