Kelowna, B.C. – The Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB) and its Okanagan WaterWise program is postponing its popular Canada Water Week-UN World Water Day annual film screening and panel discussion. Instead, it is offering residents suggestions to celebrate water at home.
“We love doing this annual event, bringing people together to celebrate and support water in the Okanagan. It’s always a fun event,” explained Executive Director Anna Warwick Sears. Canada Water Week runs March 16-22, ending with UN World Water Day on the 22nd. This year, OBWB’s Okanagan WaterWise had planned to team up with UBC Okanagan’s Institute for Biodiversity, Resilience, and Ecosystem Services (BRAES) to screen the new movie Brave Blue World, and hold a panel discussion. Due to current concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic and large public gatherings, it was decided to postpose the event.
“Right now we are following the direction of health officials to limit social gatherings,” added Sears. “We are encouraging people to celebrate Canada Water Week & UN World Water Day in their own way and look forward to screening this film in the coming months. Those who have already purchased tickets will be reimbursed.”
In the meantime, the team at the Water Board has assembled a list of movies that people may want to consider for their own viewing party. Of course there are the films that OkWaterWise has shown at past Canada Water Week celebrations, including:
- Watermark, which features the stunning photography of Canada’s Edward Burtynsky and illustrates our complicated relationship with water. The film is available on iTunes and several other online streaming services;
- River Blue, follows B.C.-based Mark Angelo, an internationally-celebrated rivers conservationist, as he explores the textile industry and the resulting pollution in waterways around the world. Available at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/riverbluebroadcast;
- A River Film, profiles our Okanagan/Okanogan rivershed, and through spectacular footage explores the complex relationship between people in this transboundary watershed, the fish, upland species and the wider Columbia Basin. Available at http://bit.ly/A-River-Film;
- Beyond Climate, a touching and hopeful documentary narrated by David Suzuki gets beyond the headlines on climate change in B.C. and looks at the collective wisdom and perspectives of Indigenous leaders, local communities, scientists, and policymakers, including those in the Okanagan. Online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkSg-JboyAI.
Other OBWB staff suggestions for Canada Water Week film watching: A River Runs Through It, Water, The Mission, Shape of Water, Water World, and Mad Max-Fury Road. And for younger viewers: Rango, WALL-E and Finding Nemo. (A great source for age-based media reviews is CommonSenseMedia.org.)
Have a suggestion for a movie to celebrate water? We encourage people to head over to the Okanagan WaterWise Facebook page at www.facebook.com/OkWaterWise/ and share their ideas.
Grab a glass of water or other water-imbued beverage, curl up on your couch, and enjoy. “And don’t forget the popcorn,” added Sears.