This month, a number of screenings of the film ‘Kogis: Together to Heal the Earth’ have sparked fruitful discussions between audience members, researchers, teachers, elected representatives and members of the public, all centred on the same question: how can we work together to care for our shared heritage – the Earth and all living things?

In Uzel (Brittany), the meeting between local residents and Michel Podolak, president of Tchendukua France, provided an opportunity for sincere and profound discussion. Following the screenings, the discussions centred on human health and the health of the local environment.

One question echoed through the room:

 ‘What can we do?’

The Kogi’s answer:

“Slow down, be still, listen to nature, the trees, the water, the stones”

The mayor of Uzel also shared the initiatives being carried out in his town regarding water management.

At the Le Grand Bivouac Festival, the film moved the audience with its poetry and depth. The River Rhône becomes the thread of a dialogue between two world views, two ways of living in – and being lived in by – nature. The discussions that followed highlighted just how much this perspective from the Sierra Nevada could inspire a different way of thinking about our territories, here in Europe.

At INSA Lyon, the screening opened up a genuine space for reflection and action. Lecturers and students shared a common drive to connect knowledge, ecology and humanity. Educational initiatives are already underway. In the humanities, new research will draw directly on indigenous knowledge. A collective discussion has begun on the ‘health of the territorial body’, linking care for the human body with care for the Earth.

 ‘Man is nature becoming aware of itself, but we have forgotten this’

 Élisée Reclus – Man and the Earth