Photo by Михаил Павленко on Unsplash
In lieu of our usual shop socials and shift crossovers, we’ve started 2021 with a WNW Netflix Party! The aim is to get through that long old list of documentaries we keep meaning to watch, whilst getting to discuss the issues that they cover in the chat. First up on the agenda was Kiss the Ground. With permission of the volunteers that attended, we have collated our views of the film. As you will see, there’s a range of opinions!
The general consensus after watching this was: well, that was interesting. As avid environmentalists, it can be hard to find documentaries that are accessible to the layperson but not too simple for someone with a handful of knowledge already. Kiss the Ground offered a great balance of the two!
“They did a great job of explaining how soil life is super important for plant health and carbon sequestration, and the threats to our soils! Especially some examples of local programmes that some people are learning; I hope that mobilises people to get involved a bit more!”
“I thought it was a very interesting and education film... but it didn’t give me anything for personal improvement. It just educated me, which I suppose is necessary too.”
“That picture slide had so many options on how to address the soil problem – a whole documentary could have been based on that!!”
Whilst some volunteers felt that the documentary was somewhat lacking in the ‘what next?’ aspect, it wasn’t as if possible ventured to address soil degradation were not mentioned. For just a few seconds, the screen filled with images of all the ways we can combat this issue, but the program only highlighted the important of just one – composting, perhaps the most commonly known strategy already. There was easily room for greater exposure here on the ways in which individual and commercial action can impact the health of earth. Moreover, of the community action they did mention, Kiss the Ground missed an opportunity to demonstrate progress of such schemes. One volunteer expressed particular interest in a national programme: “I wish they talked more about France’s soil programme; they kind of left it without any talk about progress and what not, so I’m interested in knowing more.” But perhaps ‘what’s next? was not the purpose of the film, often the value can be found in attitude shift and raising awareness rather than practical action guides.
“I think a lot of the value in these kinds of documentaries is less in changing individual behaviour and more affecting a cultural change in how we regard the natural environment, so that it’s less an exploitable resource and more something that we can care for, which benefits us in turn.”
The general consensus after watching this was: well, that was interesting. As avid environmentalists, it can be hard to find documentaries that are accessible to the layperson but not too simple for someone with a handful of knowledge already. Kiss the Ground offered a great balance of the two!
“They did a great job of explaining how soil life is super important for plant health and carbon sequestration, and the threats to our soils! Especially some examples of local programmes that some people are learning; I hope that mobilises people to get involved a bit more!”
“I thought it was a very interesting and education film... but it didn’t give me anything for personal improvement. It just educated me, which I suppose is necessary too.”
“That picture slide had so many options on how to address the soil problem – a whole documentary could have been based on that!!”
Whilst some volunteers felt that the documentary was somewhat lacking in the ‘what next?’ aspect, it wasn’t as if possible ventured to address soil degradation were not mentioned. For just a few seconds, the screen filled with images of all the ways we can combat this issue, but the program only highlighted the important of just one – composting, perhaps the most commonly known strategy already. There was easily room for greater exposure here on the ways in which individual and commercial action can impact the health of earth. Moreover, of the community action they did mention, Kiss the Ground missed an opportunity to demonstrate progress of such schemes. One volunteer expressed particular interest in a national programme: “I wish they talked more about France’s soil programme; they kind of left it without any talk about progress and what not, so I’m interested in knowing more.” But perhaps ‘what’s next? was not the purpose of the film, often the value can be found in attitude shift and raising awareness rather than practical action guides.
“I think a lot of the value in these kinds of documentaries is less in changing individual behaviour and more affecting a cultural change in how we regard the natural environment, so that it’s less an exploitable resource and more something that we can care for, which benefits us in turn.”
“You can learn a lot based on the choices of inclusion and exclusion.”
A lot of our discussion prompted by this film was about what we didn’t see rather than what we did. Despite being a 2020 production, it was an hour into the film before someone other than a middle-aged white man was shown on screen – and even then volunteers remarked: “this still feels a little white saviour-ish”. One volunteering summarised it really well below…
“The documentary is ridiculously white, barely any time is given to anyone who is not white and there’s no mention of the fact that a lot of soil regeneration techniques have been practiced for centuries by indigenous growers. There’s no mention of their work nor screen time for them, which is a huge shame, especially when a lot of food labourers tend to be people of colour and their role in the food system needs to be acknowledged!”
We are not the first to have noticed the whitewashing of environmentalism in Kiss the Ground; many online critics also felt the same and recommend watching The Grounded which is a documentary about indigenous farming. We certainly will be adding that to the list!One aspect of soil health is considering methods of animal agriculture and it has been noted that grass-fed beef on large ranches with plenty of pasture is a more ethical way forward. However, it felt like an all too simple solution. “I worry people will watch this bit and be like, ‘oh, eating meat is fine then!'”. “Yeah, even if all meat is ‘grown’ sustainably, it is not possible for everyone to eat as much meat they do currently.”
This is something that Cowspiracy touches on as well. Ethical and sustainable farming is possible in small pockets of communities, however, it is simply unfathomable on a large scale, with the rates of meat and dairy consumption we currently experience. (We acknowledge that some view ‘ethical farming’ as similar to ‘humane killing’, in that is is an oxymoron and a concept that logically cannot exist. Here ‘ethical’ refers to the quality of life of the animal and the impact on locals). Despite this unclear message regarding farming, one line struck a chord with all of us:
In a closing statement, one of our soil enthusiast volunteers concluded: “the documentary definitely left me feeling both hopeless and hopeful, because we’ve messed up so bad but there’s SO many solutions already out there!! But it seems like we need the funding and policies in place to make the necessary progress.” If you’re intrigued and want to learn more about soil life, she recommends these 3 books:
1. Teaming with Microbes by Jeff Lownfels
2. Dirt: the erosion of civilisations by David R. Montgomery
3. One Straw Revolution by Masanbou Fukuoka
A lot of our discussion prompted by this film was about what we didn’t see rather than what we did. Despite being a 2020 production, it was an hour into the film before someone other than a middle-aged white man was shown on screen – and even then volunteers remarked: “this still feels a little white saviour-ish”. One volunteering summarised it really well below…
“The documentary is ridiculously white, barely any time is given to anyone who is not white and there’s no mention of the fact that a lot of soil regeneration techniques have been practiced for centuries by indigenous growers. There’s no mention of their work nor screen time for them, which is a huge shame, especially when a lot of food labourers tend to be people of colour and their role in the food system needs to be acknowledged!”
We are not the first to have noticed the whitewashing of environmentalism in Kiss the Ground; many online critics also felt the same and recommend watching The Grounded which is a documentary about indigenous farming. We certainly will be adding that to the list!One aspect of soil health is considering methods of animal agriculture and it has been noted that grass-fed beef on large ranches with plenty of pasture is a more ethical way forward. However, it felt like an all too simple solution. “I worry people will watch this bit and be like, ‘oh, eating meat is fine then!'”. “Yeah, even if all meat is ‘grown’ sustainably, it is not possible for everyone to eat as much meat they do currently.”
This is something that Cowspiracy touches on as well. Ethical and sustainable farming is possible in small pockets of communities, however, it is simply unfathomable on a large scale, with the rates of meat and dairy consumption we currently experience. (We acknowledge that some view ‘ethical farming’ as similar to ‘humane killing’, in that is is an oxymoron and a concept that logically cannot exist. Here ‘ethical’ refers to the quality of life of the animal and the impact on locals). Despite this unclear message regarding farming, one line struck a chord with all of us:
"Healthy plant. Healthy human. Healthy planet." - Kiss the Ground, 2020
In a closing statement, one of our soil enthusiast volunteers concluded: “the documentary definitely left me feeling both hopeless and hopeful, because we’ve messed up so bad but there’s SO many solutions already out there!! But it seems like we need the funding and policies in place to make the necessary progress.” If you’re intrigued and want to learn more about soil life, she recommends these 3 books:
1. Teaming with Microbes by Jeff Lownfels
2. Dirt: the erosion of civilisations by David R. Montgomery
3. One Straw Revolution by Masanbou Fukuoka
Photo by Nikola Jovanovic on Unsplash
So that’s our thoughts – or rather the very mixed thoughts of 10 volunteers! Have you watched Kiss the Ground? Tell us what you thought and learnt – we would love to continue the discussion further, particularly on representation, the roots of soil regeneration and where to go next. Comment below or get in touch via Facebook or Instagram!
Author: Holly
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