An evening with the maker of ‘The Story of Stuff’

Annie Leonard, the genius behind the short movie ‘The Story of Stuff’, was in Istanbul on May 31st for a screening of the movie. I was among the few lucky Istanbulites-—nothing related to being invited, simply due to people’s lack of awareness!—-who were able to watch the movie with her, after which a Q&A session took place.

I already had a question in mind as I approached the movie theatre, since I had watched the movie several times—thanks to its brilliant webpage. What preoccupied me was something which I had come to realize after looking at what socially and environmentally aware thinkers has said back in the 50s and 60s. I think that today we cannot help but refer greatly to their studies, go against what they’ve gone against, and circulate around the same terms: Corporatism, consumerism, planned & perceived obsolescence, etc.

My question to her was, “Have we failed in coping with these menaces, and if we have, what has gone wrong?”

Annie was too sincere to avoid merry optimism, and she agreed with the fact that we have been failing and getting worse. She strongly emphasised that having a soft-spot for green issues is not enough, and the important thing is to see the big picture, “the economic underline”, as she called it. Feeling the need to address my general criticism on a personal level, she emphasised how she sees her own contribution to the movement.

Annie said that, most important of all, she feels responsible to the world as a U.S. citizen. Because, she added, besides all the exporting of garbage the U.S. has been carrying out in the course of the last 50 years, she pointed to the fact that her country has also been increasingly exporting its way of thinking and lifestyle. She said this is what particularly worries her the most, and it has recently been justified when she saw “20 billboards of Sex and The City in the Istanbul Airport”.

Well, I think she has definitely had another major contribution: Articulating these issues with a very down to earth tone, in an easy to grasp and accessible format. Follow this link to a previous article to learn more about her work.