In this COVID era, we are all challenged on various fronts and are struggling to deal with the uncertainty this pandemic has brought to our lives and work. As we all find our respective new normal, noncommercial environmental film festivals and forums like ours becomes very critical for keeping the spirits afloat by turning once again to the environmental awareness programs to inspire and encourage everyone during the period of such a global calamity.
As a festival and forum, CMS VATAVARAN had recognised the power of social media platforms in its their early days in India and decided to engage with its audience in a continuing process through the medium of these platforms. As a result, the social media platforms of CMS VATAVARAN have created a strong online network of Indian and International filmmakers, policymakers, academicians, research think tanks, youth of different age and educational group, environmentalists, journalists, defence & paramilitary forces and nature enthusiasts.
Taking this fact into consideration, in the year 2020, CMS VATAVARAN team while working from home in a national lockdown since March 21, 2020, decided to leverage the power of social media platforms through a series of online programs like online celebration of different environmental days, online workshops, online film-making competitions, quiz and essay writing competitions and world’s first “Lockdown Special Online Environmental Film Festival”. These online efforts were much appreciated by the different sections of the society. More than one lakh people connected online through these various online efforts.
Today, when India is again seeing the second wave of COVID-19, which is much deadlier than the early one, we wish to use our experience and knowledge of the previous years and use the online platforms to reach more and more people again for raising the awareness regarding the different aspects of biodiversity and environmental conservation by organizing and celebrating a series of film screenings, webinars, workshops and online competitions.
These programs will start from May 22, 2021 that is the International Day for Biological Diversity (World Biodiversity Day) and will come to an culminate on June 8, 2021 (World Oceans Day). During these 18 days, a number of online activities will be organised.
- ONLINE FILM SCREENINGS: Daily Film screenings
- PANEL DISSCUSSION: Covid-19 or the pandemic of abused biodiversity
- TEACHER’S TRAINING WORKSHOP
- UNDERSTANDING THE PROCESS: SPECIAL SESSION WITH OSCAR WINNER SWATI THIYAGARAJAN
- CELEBREATING WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY: ONLINE QUIZE COMPETETION
