The Lorax was one of three films that I watched in preparation for the film nominations, and I have to say it is my personal favourite (although I didn’t end up nominating the film because I felt Don’t Look Up was more related to the course). All three films that I viewed had similar themes- the effects of a capitalist society on the environment, why the environment needs to be saved from human activity, and how greedy corporations affect everyone and everything (all of this is allegorical in the case of Don’t Look Up). In the Lorax, the protagonist Teddy lives in a town with fake vegetation. Not a single real tree exists in the town, and the world outside the town is barren with no trees or plants. SPOILER ALERT: This situation arose because a character called the Once-ler made a product that harvested too many trees and vegetation in a forest (protected by the Lorax) for profit, resulting in pollution and eventually the last tree being cut down (sound familiar?). I felt that this film was relevant to the themes of this course because through our lectures and our talks, we are ultimately not only learning about plant ecology, but also how to preserve all the vegetation as scientists without letting the corporations destroy everything for profit. We are trying to rebuild the world and slow the effects of climate change, if I may be dramatic. The Lorax is very relevant to our feelings of dread over what seems inevitable, but ultimately I have the faith that we can overcome the effects of pollution and deforestation if we pursued the right methods and we work hard as ecologists to save the world.
Applied Plant Ecology Winter 2020 