SEQUOIAS OF THE SEA, a fascinating film and a conversation with its directors

Kelp forests, found up and down California's shores and along nearly a quarter of the world's coastlines, are crucial climate-change mitigators — but this magnificent species is in dire trouble. Along the Northern California coast, we've lost a striking 95 percent of these underwater giants due to a perfect storm of changing ocean conditions. It's an ecological disaster in real time, and what’s happening off the coast of one California town is also changing lives on land, as fishermen, scientists and community members unite to restore this critical ecosystem and build a new blue economy.

As an ocean lover, you owe it to yourself to learn more about this heroic effort, so I hope you'll join me at Activists For The Oceans' Film Showcase, featuring Sequoias of the Sea, and a conversation with filmmakers Natasha Benjamin and Ana Blanco.

Sequoias of the Sea tells the story of the environmental, cultural and economic destruction impacting a Mendocino County town that has lost its kelp forest. It’s a deep dive into the lives of fishermen, tribes, scientists and an entire community as they work to restore a habitat devastated by a warming climate.

The 54-minute film is the centerpiece of the event, which also includes two shorter films about the importance of protecting our oceans:

• Mishopshno follows the initiative to create one of California’s first tribally co-managed marine protected areas, a proposal that could redefine conservation itself. Off the coast of Carpinteria, fishermen, scientists, and Indigenous leaders fight for a resilient future — but remain divided over the same waters.
• The Sea League documents the efforts of the storytellers at Imagine5, who run special summer camps and after-school programs to create ocean stewards through ocean sports. “It’s like little league for nature connection,” says founder Chris Ragland.

Here's the schedule for the event:

​4:30 pm: Doors open and networking
5:00 pm: Welcome and introduction
5:05 pm: The Sea League (5 min)
5:15 pm: Mishopshno (20 min)
5:40 pm: Sequoias of the Sea (54 min)
6:35 pm: Filmmaker/expert Q&A

Tickets and more details are available online, with a suggested donation of $20. I'll be at the venue by about 4:30 and will post a comment to help you find me before we take seats.

Additional Screening: Sequoias of the Sea is also showing by itself at 7 pm on the following night, Saturday June 6, at the Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael, and the film's directors will speak after that showing as well.