Israel Does Video Festival On Facebook To help Environment

With conflicts on several fronts and regular political turmoil, many Israelis say environmental issues are far from their minds.

A national festival on Facebook is trying to change the country’s attitude towards the environment with a competition that awards winners based on the most creative individual solutions to environmental issues.

EcoClip, launched two weeks ago by graduates of the Interdisciplinary Center based in Herzliya, Israel, asks participants to submit short, home-made videos that raise awareness about issues such as water conservation, energy saving, pollution and recycling.

One of videos currently on the site was submitted by Mor Ravoach and deals with water conservation. Ravoach took the literal phrase “every drop of water counts” and transformed it into a visual narrative. In the video, a young woman is seen doing her daily house chores – washing her teeth and drying her clothes while ensuring that not one drop is wasted in the process. After collecting all the saved drops of water into a bucket, the woman tosses it into the ocean.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvmiPwudhUU[/youtube]

Being from the north of Israel, Ravoach says she witnesses the slow drying up of the Sea of Galilee, something which is deeply worrying her. “We are talking about the main provider of water to the country [Israel], it is our environment, and if we fail to act, it will soon disappear,” she adds.

Michelle Lourie, one of the creators of EcoClip, told NoCamels: “We want to give people ideas for small changes they can apply in their lives…and give them the feeling that they can actually make a difference. We have such a beautiful country and we need to take care of it.”

Another video, submitted by Tom Gani, highlights the use of solar energy through the feeling of love. The video shows a young couple walking around town carrying two solar panels on their backs. As their walk comes to an end and the sun sets, all the street lights suddenly turn on. The video ends with the sentence: “There is really such a thing as positive energy.”

The video festival, which will last another month, will be judged by important Israeli figures such as actress Orna Banai, Israeli Parliament member Nitzan Horowitz and Professor Amit Lavie Dinur, among others.

The winner will receive an Imac; the runner-up an electric bicycle and the third place will receive a flip mino HD camera. The public will also be asked to choose a favorite, who will be gifted an iPad.