New documentary unpacks how B.C. tech is fighting climate change
The six-part series by former VTJ staff writer Allison Gacad highlights the B.C. leaders transforming energy, mining, transportation, and food systems.
Growing up, Allison Gacad watched her mother deal with calls every week from siblings and relatives dealing with the climate crisis in the Philippines.
“Being young and having that experience incessantly, it shapes you,” Gacad told the Vancouver Tech Journal. “I think it inevitably shows you how the issue of climate change will always hit those who weren't responsible for the problems the hardest. I think living in Canada and recognizing that privilege [...], there's a sense of, ‘What can I do to address the problems?’”
Throughout high school, university, and her career, Gacad explored different approaches — from working as a researcher, then penning articles as a staff writer for Vancouver Tech Journal, and now releasing a documentary called InBetween Stories. The six-part series explores the complex question of whether we can use tech to save us from climate change. It also highlights how B.C. leaders are transforming energy, mining, transportation, and food systems, as well as the local communities and workers most affected.
While the first four episodes can be watched online, the entire series will premiere at the VIFF Centre on October 15, followed by a panel discussion with some of the featured experts, which Gacad says will be an honest conversation on what it takes to develop and scale solutions in an equitable and just way at the pace that it needs to be done.
The call to produce
As a former VTJ reporter, Gacad was at the forefront of some of the tech being built in the city as she interviewed experts, toured facilities, and covered stories daily.
“The more I talked to people, the more I learned that tech is one component of the puzzle in solving the climate crisis,” she said. “I think that the series really unpacks what that puzzle looks like when it comes to each industry, such as hydrogen, clean electricity, carbon removal, and food systems. That puzzle is different for each topic [and] each region.”
Over time, she found herself itching to push the boundaries of what it would look like to tell those stories. So, when she came across an ad from Telus Storyhive that encouraged first-time filmmakers to apply for grant funding, she gave it a shot and was accepted.
The timing was serendipitous, says Gacad. By then, she had already met a director that she could work with, Mark Anthony Roz from Trifecta Productions, whom she met at the first VTJ climate event she hosted.
“It was really awesome to be able to work with people who are so honed in their craft,” shared Gacad. “I also thought it was valuable to have the creative insight and perspective of people who aren't deep into climate. Because at the end of the day, this needs to be a documentary that communicates to a general audience.”
Takeaways from viewers
Being thoughtful of those who aren’t very familiar with the topics covered, as well as those who are, was a priority for the producer and host.
“There can be a bit of a sense of ego, although not intentional, in terms of working on climate, because it [can be] such a noble cause compared to, say, a purely capitalist pursuit,” Gacad said. “[There’s a] responsibility to recognize that not everybody comes from the same background, experiences, education, and geography as those who can make that educated decision that something is a good solution for people and the planet.”
She added: “The more we can step outside of that ego and be able to humbly recognize that everyone brings a different set of lived experiences to the table — as difficult as that is — it's important if we want to get at the structural, systemic equity challenges that underlie the crisis.”
Gacad says that some viewers have been surprised to learn from the documentary how responses to climate change can shape the world in a positive way, like how organizations transport people and goods, or power everyday lives and industries. Others have shared that the series provided an in-depth look at what kind of ecosystem is needed to support the tech being built in Vancouver.
As for Gacad herself, she learned how much more work needs to be done to talk about climate change in a more accessible way, as she found many people remain fearful — or even skeptical — when it comes to some solutions, like carbon removal.
“This idea that we need to remove billions of tons of carbon dioxide from our atmosphere and put it away somewhere else — people are scared about what that industry is going to look like,” explained Gacad. “Which communities is it going to affect? What role will governments play? What role will corporations play?”
What it takes for a solution to work
The biggest message that Gacad hopes people take away from the documentary is that it takes an ecosystem of the right support, funding, and community acceptance for a solution to be effective.
“We touched on this a bit in the series, but there are lots of communities that hold a lot of trauma when it comes to, for example, the industries that are most responsible for climate change,” Gacad shared. “We have to hold space for that. So many solutions are going to shake what our economies and industries look like. We can't afford to replicate the past mistakes of extractive industries, like oil and gas and mining.”
Gacad hopes that government and corporate leaders will continue to engage the communities historically left out of conversations and have been significantly affected by the climate crisis.
“From what I've seen as a journalist, [many] have been really intentional and good about doing that, but I think it's something that needs to remain at the forefront of developing and scaling solutions,” she said.