Sunday, May 15 | 5:30 p.m. | Warszawa screening room
When Will We Start Valuing Rivers? A debate following the screening of the film RIVER dir. Jennifer Peedom
In Polish only
Partner: Self-government of the Pomeranian Voivodeship
Rivers are nature's circulatory system: migratory corridors for animals and plants, they give us life and food and supply the environment with water. Just like the human circulatory system, to function correctly, they need to maintain continuity and be looked after. The Pomeranian Voivodeship has the most extensive hydrographic network in Poland. It comprises not only numerous rivers and lakes but also a unique depression area of Żuławy Wiślane. Water is Pomerania's greatest treasure. The region's main axis, transporting water (unfortunately along with pollutants) from two-thirds of the country's area is the Vistula River. Why, in the era of climate change and droughts, do we still treat rivers as passive objects and exploit them without considering the consequences their destruction has on the natural world and, ultimately, on human life? Are we ready to value the rivers? When will we finally realise their critical importance?
Guests:
Prof. Elżbieta Niemirycz, Ph.D. Eng. – Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Gdańsk, she is an expert in hydrology and hydraulic engineering, as well as in water supply and wastewater and soil treatment.
Józef Sarnowski – agricultural engineer, a member of the Pomorskie Voivodeship Executive Board, with long-standing ties to the Żuławy and Powiśle areas. He was a vice-chairman of the Pomeranian Regional Assembly and a member of the commission for development strategy and spatial policy and the commission for agriculture, food economy and rural development. Currently on the voivodeship board, responsible for education and rural development.
Krzysztof Pałkowski – director of the Department of Environment and Agriculture at the Office of the Marshal of the Pomeranian Voivodeship, which, i. a. assesses and releases information on the environment and its protection and develops and implements the voivodeship waste management plans, air protection programmes and noise protection programmes. He is also responsible for fisheries management and geological information.
Host:
Joanna Wiśniowska – journalist affiliated with Gazeta Wyborcza Trójmiasto, Wysokie Obcasy and Krytyka Polityczna. She has written, among others, for Tygodnik Powszechny, newonce.sport and the Kopalnia. Sztuka Futbolu magazine. She writes about climate, the environment and women's football.
