Sustainable Saturdays return to the Sandhills with a film series running from June through November. This isn’t the first such film series put on by the organization, which partners with Fayetteville’s PWC to bring films about environment-related issues to the community. From global economics to local agriculture, local water issues, climate change and the importance of honeybees, this series offers an opportunity to not only learn about these issues but how to take action and make a difference. Each film showing includes a presentation by a guest speaker followed by an open discussion. The first film is at the Cameo Art House Theatre on June 25. 

The series kicks off with Black Gold, which delves into the international coffee trade. Follow Tadesse Meskela, the leader of an Ethiopian coffee cooperative as he struggles to save local farmers from bankruptcy. Blackgoldmovie.com notes that next to oil, coffee is the most valuable trading commodity in the world, yet while customers happily pay top dollar for cappuccinos, lattes and the like, coffee bean farmers face bankruptcy because buyers refuse to pay a fair price for the crop. On his journey, Meskela travels to London and Seattle to meet with coffee industry powerhouses. He faces challenges including New York commodity traders, the international coffee exchanges and the double dealings of trade ministers at the World Trade Organization.

Larry’s Coffee Bean Roasters is set to attend the showing and will offer coffee samples.

Other films in the series include: More than Honey; River Run: Down the Cape Fear River to the Sea; Farmland; Soylent Green; The Burden; and Community: Planet Neighborhood. Denise Bruce, the green action arm of Sustainable Sandhills, said, “We seek to have a wide array of environmental topics for the community to explore; and more importantly, we seek to provide a safe and public place for discussion and involvement.” 

More than Honey looks at honeybee colonies in California, Switzerland, China and Australia. It delves into the current honeybee crisis with colony collapse disorder and ponders the economic, political and ecological implications of the worldwide disappearance of the honeybee. 

River Run: Down the Cape Fear to the Sea follows the Cape Fear River from its headwaters to the ocean. History, ecology, commerce and issues facing the river’s future come in to play.

It’s easy enough to run to the grocery store to grab some produce, people seldom consider the farmers who grow that produce. Farmland showcases the lives of 20-something-year-old farmers and ranchers and documents the challenges they take to adapt to the ever evolving methods of farming.

Soylent Green, starring Charlton Heston, is a fictional account of the damage caused by greenhouse gasses and overpopulation. In this movie, a CEO with ties to the world’s food supply is murdered, leaving an New York Police Department detective to investigate. 

The Burden builds a case for moving the U.S. away from using fossil fuels. It shows this relationship with fossil fuels as a threat to national security saying, “The troops are crying out,” in the words of Gen. James Mattis, ‘to unleash us from the tether of fue! But is Congress listening?”

The final film in the series, Community: Plant Neighborhood, tackles the topic of citizens promoting change in their own communities. Balancing growth while preserving natural resources is no easy task, but this endeavor explores are variety of creative ways to transform toxic waste into a moneymaking enterprise.

All Sustainable Saturday films start at 10:45  a.m., and take place at the Cameo Art House Theatre on the fourth Saturday of the month.