Voice of the Forest

It’s a strange dichotomy—wanting to preserve the traditions and heritage of struggling African tribes while simultaneously seeking to update these Third World nations with modern conveniences in order to ensure a healthier quality of life. In an effort to address this controversial topic, Bowers Museum is showing Graham Booth’s National Geographic documentary Voice of the Forest. The film looks at Africa’s Congo River Basin and the complex dilemma facing the Baka, a pygmy tribe who live off the woods being desecrated by daily logging, and a man in neighboring Ghana who depends on the rainforest’s trees for his local coffin-making business. But it also takes a close look at how booming overseas markets for rainforest trees generate jobs and economic growth for others.
Thu., April 2, 1:30 p.m., 2009