AudreyFilmAnnotation1..Darwin's+Nightmare

Audrey Newcomb January 29, 2010 Sustainability Problems **Film Annotation: “Darwin’s Nightmare”** “Darwin’s Nightmare” was directed by Huber Sauper and released in 2004. The lives of Tanzanian fishermen, children, prostitutes, fish factory workers, professional scavengers, and citizens were depicted and the effects of Nile perch consumption on their lives were explored. Many Tanzanians, along with European pilots and business owners, make their living off of the Nile perch industry, although the Europeans’ dividend from the business is much larger than the Africans’ share. The Tanzanians filmed live on the shore of Lake Victoria, the second largest lake in the world, and before the 1960s, home to over 210 species of cichlids. Around 1960 the Nile perch was introduced to Lake Victoria and the foreign fish subsequently ravaged the existing ecosystem. Paralleling the story of the ravaged aquatic ecosystem is the Tanzanian society ravaged by the continuous demand for perch fillets. Just as scientific curiosity introduced the Nile perch to a new territory, the forces of globalism introduced European markets to Tanzania. Tanzanian government and industry leaders curious about a new source of wealth and about the possibility of a “competitive” economy for the future of their country have affected the lives of millions. These leaders have argued that the fish industry’s affect on the locals has been favorable. The fish industry employs many Tanzanian citizens as fishers and fish factory workers. (Although employment in the fish industry must be similar to the increased excitement and activity in the cichilds’ lives that resulted from the introduction of a new predator!). Greedy personal curiosity disables the industry and government leaders from seeing the “nightmare” that has unfolded as a result of the fish industry. For example, the HIV epidemic has only been amplified. Wives of fishermen often become prostitutes to supplement their small income, and especially when their husbands die fishing. The Tanzanian citizens are left with piles of fish scraps to eat, although the process of digging through the bones and rotting fish flesh exposes them to ammoniac gas that blinds them. Even some of the interviewed citizens believed that the trade with Europe was beneficial to improving their livelihoods. The fish factory manager was especially in support of European business. His white collared shirt, roomy office, and singing fish appeared to be new novelties resulting from booming business, and according to him, everyone on Lake Tanzania made their living off of the business. It’s unclear as to whether his office windows allowed him to verify his definition of “making a living.” Sauper’s interview with the fish factory manager helps viewers realize the silliness that arises out of pursuing the industrialized definition of success. Sauper choose to feature a clip of the fish factory manager enjoying a plastic fish sing and wiggle. The insidiousness of this scene makes me want to sell any piece of junk I have and donate the money. However, the singing fish is just one example of the irony encompassed by “Darwin’s Nightmare.” Nile perch fillet is Lake Victoria’s shore’s largest export and an important commodity for Europeans. The film stated that “2 million white people eat Victorian fish every day.” At the very same time 2 million in the Lake Victoria area are famished, living on less than one dollar a day. In terms of the most economical prevention of starvation, it is unclear why there is so much work put into exporting the Nile perch. Simply keeping the perch in their “native territory” could be cheaper than the $17 million dollars of aid that the U.N. Food Aid Program declared necessary. Contrasting the exorbitant amount of fish being exported with the U.N. call for aid was one of the most compelling parts of the film because it showed how hard we makes things for ourselves by trying to circumvent natural processes and manipulate ecosystems. Another irony is the fact that same planes that take fish out of the country bring weapons to areas of Africa in strife. Although Sauper demonstrated this connection, I found it to be one of the least compelling aspects of the film. It is an ironic fact, but even without the fish industry arms would probably still be transported; the transport of the fish just makes the arms transport less suspicious. The major forces contributing to the unequal distribution of food are political, legal, economic, and ecological. Ecological forces contributing to the problem are not explicitly reported, but one citizen searching through fish scraps affirms that doing so is easier than farming, which leads one to assume that the Tanzanian terrain is difficult to farm. The Tanzanian Planning Commission of Tanzania’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs specifically states in the report “The Tanzania Development Vision 2025” that “Agriculture, the backbone of the economy, continues to be dependent mainly on rainfall and on backward technology. Thus agricultural productivity is low and erratic.” The government of Tanzania is to blame for allowing trade to inflate so much that the citizens are only left with fish scraps. It is clear that the Planning Commission welcomes increased involvement in a global market. Traditional indicators of economic growth (GDP) are becoming increasingly important to the Tanzanian government, despite the fact that already industrialized countries are experiencing many sustainability problems as a result of the GDP’s ability to externalize true costs. One section of the report states: “The economy is expected to have the following characteristics: -A diversified and semi-industrialized economy with a substantial industrial sector comparable to typical middle-income countries. -Macroeconomic stability manifested by a low inflation economy and basic macroeconomic balances. -A growth rate of 8% per annum or more.” (Planning Commission) Government leaders justify the fish industry because Tanzania’s GDP has increased (Flynn). “Darwin’s Nightmare” can be attributed partly to bad judgment by Tanzanian and European governments, but also to a bad economic measure of success. Safety posters in a fish packaging factory counseled workers that “You’re part of the big system” and “it’s the dose that makes the poison.” Irony in these industrial instructions lies in the failure of those in power to heed to their own wisdom. The graphic above “you’re part of the big system” portrayed an assembly line and captured the mechanical atmosphere of the fish packing plant. But systems are more than calculated technological structures. Recognizing that you’re a part of a large social construct is imperative in order to prevent or solve the economic disparity in Tanzania. To recognize that “you’re part of the big system” means to honor the other parts of systems (honor and care for neighbors) because doing so ensures that entire system will continue to function. The suggestion that quantity can dictate qualification of a poison is also pertinent to the instability in Tanzania. Exporting fish to Europe isn’t a sinful concept by itself. The scale of the production (almost all of the Nile perch being exported) and extent of the corruption (none of the profit benefitting the many workers in the fish industry) is a huge part of the problem. Prescribing the correct “dose” is a perpetual consideration when searching for sustainable solutions. The Planning Commission had used the word “backward” to describe Tanzanian farming techniques. Perhaps the present agricultural practices were failing, but new technologies should reconcile with local knowledge and traditions instead of allowing new fishing technologies to gut Lake Victoria and the livelihoods of its citizens. In the same way new industries should reconcile with the needs of the citizens (selling Nile perch could be helpful if some fish were left to feed Tanzanians). Sauper fails to portray any sense of what life was like before the fishing industry became dominant. Therefore I am just assuming that the people possess an inherent respect of the environment and would be open to participating in a process that combines local goodwill with new technologies in order to create a “sustainable” Tanzanian. Education is an important factor in a sustainable future because education can help citizens moderate the doses of new technologies that will affect their lives (also see Note 1). Education of European citizens is equally important as the demand for Nile perch will not subdue if citizens cannot connect their consumption to an unfair and damaging industry. An ex-Tanzanian school teacher mentioned that perhaps the people who own the World Bank and World Trade Organization are the strongest people. The Nile perch is the strongest species of fish in Lake Victoria but its cannibalistic nature portends a dismal future of its existence. Additional question responses: “Darwin’s Nightmare” targets viewers that live in industrialized nations and asks them to reconsider ignorantly consuming goods. This is a very small action that viewers are left with to take, but how else can one renounce the degradation and waste that result from the “efficiencies” of industrialization? Sauper does not leave the viewers with any tactics to reverse or stop the unintended and deleterious effects of globalism; at best Sauper combats the effects by increasing awareness of globalism’s reach. To enhance the film’s environmental education value there could have been greater emphasis on how the Nile perch arrived in the lake. Lax standards and careless people allow upsets in nature’s order. Precautionary mindsets could have prevented the foreign species’ form arriving. This film could have been used as an example as to why precaution is essential for a sustainable future. Extrapolating the consequences of one foreign species on an entire country, one could see that genetic modification and the global distribution of food should prescribe to precautionary measures. __Note 1__: “The Tanzanian Development Vision 2025” in the section Tanzania Past Visions and Impediments states: “The level and quality of education that has been attained has not been adequate to meet the growing development challenges and to enable the search for solutions to the development problems that confront the nation.” Sources: Flynn, Nick. "Darwin's Nightmare and the World Bank." 15 03 2006. Web. 1 Feb 2010. . Planning Commission,. "The Tanzania Development Vision 2025." Web. 1 Feb 2010. .