Sac State professor hosts screening of climate documentary on Greenland ice melt
Kathy Kasic, a scientist filmmaker and professor at Sacramento State, will host a free screening and panel discussion for her new documentary, 'The Memory of Darkness, Light, and Ice,' at 6 p.m. Monday at the Crest Theater, 1013 K St., in downtown Sacramento.
The film examines the history of environmental research tied to Cold War military projects and how early studies predicted the decline of the Greenland Ice Sheet due to carbon dioxide emissions.
The 60-minute documentary shows how the ice sheet has melted over decades and considers what steps are needed to slow or reverse the trend.
Belgian glaciologist Jean-Louis Tison, featured in the film, explains three astronomical influences on Earth's natural climate cycles: its orbit, axial tilt and wobble. But Tison said human activity is changing the climate faster than any natural cycle.
'We are in an astronomical phase where the climate should cool down, but because of human activity, we are going fast into a warming of the climate system,' he says in the 60-minute film.
Kasic served as the film's producer, director and cinematographer. She said her interest in polar environments and climate science began decades ago.
'I am originally a biologist, from my time when I was studying nocturnal frogs in the Amazon,' Kasic said. 'I have been a science documentary filmmaker for 20 years, though I have been interested in climate-related science for more than 30 years.'
The film has screened more than 20 times in the past three months, including at the American Association for the Advancement of Science in February. It won the John de Graaf Environmental Filmmaking Award at the Wild and Scenic Film Festival and was named 'Best Feature Documentary' at the Raw Science Film Festival in New York. It was also shown at a Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition Task Force briefing at the U.S. Capitol.
'In terms of the science, I am fascinated by how these potentialities are tied to human decisions thousands of miles away,' Kasic said. 'I believe in the strength of the human spirit and our human ingenuity, if we are all working together toward the same goal. And so my goal is that this film helps align us in understanding climate science, so we can all come together.'
Kasic said the fossil fuel industry has driven carbon dioxide levels to a historic high, accelerating the melting of ice sheets.
'We are driving toward a cliff and accelerating,' she said. 'When you look at the carbon dioxide levels of that time when the ice was gone, they were half of what they are today. So we have double the carbon dioxide now, and we've put it in the atmosphere at a rapid rate. That is extremely concerning.'
She hopes the film inspires governments, planners and the public to act now to reduce future melting.
'Our children and grandchildren will suffer. It is that simple,' Kasic said. 'The more we do now, the easier it will be for those to whom we are handing over our planet, but it is even clearly affecting us now. And so we need to make it easier for people and businesses today to make changes, to become carbon neutral and carbon zero.'
Monday's free event begins with a reception at 6 p.m. The film screening starts at 7 p.m., followed by a panel discussion at 8 p.m. with Kasic; Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica; SMUD Board Director Heidi Sanborn; and UC Davis geologist Dawn Sumner.
Free registration is available through Eventbrite and the Crest's website.
The film will be released later this year by Arte Distribution and Gravitas Ventures.
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