The Exploring the Intersection of Energy and Peace-building through Film Bass Connections project team has a few more openings for students with background in — or interest in learning more about — film making and constructing visual narratives, peace building through natural resource management, and a team-based approach to organizing and describing research. This team developed from the BorderWork(s) Lab’s UNEP Film Project and continue beyond the end of the Lab in Spring 2014.

 

Apply online through the Bass Connections website. For more information about this project, contact the project co-leaders: Erika Weinthal (Nicholas School of the Environment) or Liz Milewicz (Duke University Libraries). Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

 

About the Project: What lessons can be learned about the role of energy resources in post-conflict regions, and how can they be used to promote peace? Using over a decade’s worth of post-conflict environmental assessment film from the United Nations Environment Programme, team members will explore the role of energy resources in conflict-affected countries (e.g., Nigeria, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, and South Sudan). Team members will catalog and describe digitized footage, and partner with United Nations staff to produce visual outreach and training materials for conflict-reduction, energy resource management, and environmental management. The focus will be on energy’s role in economic development, environmental management, and peace building, with findings translated into visual materials addressing specific energy issues (e.g., oil and gas, charcoal, hydropower, timber). The project will include meetings with policy experts and documentary filmmakers as well as a trip to the Environmental Film Festival.

 

Project Timeline: Fall 2014 – Spring 2015 (with the potential for summer 2014 participation)

 

Aerial view of an artisanal refining site in Nigeria (Bodo West, Bonny LGA). 2010 © UNEP. All rights reserved.

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