Chapter 4 – North America

Greener Pastures (Length 1:25:00) (Streaming with PBS Passport: https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/documentaries/greener-pastures/)

Lesson plan guides: https://journeysinfilm.org/product/greener-pastures/

This documentary provides an intimate look at four multigenerational farming families facing the challenges that make farming one of the most high-risk professions for mental health, telling a powerful story of perseverance and the future of agriculture in America. Connects with section 4.1.

Hidden America: Children of the Plains by ABC News (2011) (All five parts available through ABC News on YouTube)

This series of five short videos chronicles life of children living on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation of the Oglala Sioux in South Dakota. Connects with section 4.2.

American Factory (2019, Length: 1:50:00) (Streaming)

This documentary examines the effects of globalization and automation as a Chinese billionaire opens a glass factory in a former General Motors plant in Ohio, highlighting the clash of cultural values and economic shifts. Connects with section 4.3.

How ‘green gentrification’ is pricing out longtime East Boston residents by PBS Newshour (2022, Length: 7:56)

Boston grapples with rising sea levels and a severe shortage of affordable housing, where efforts to address one challenge may worsen the other—a dynamic known as “green gentrification.” Connects with section 4.4.

Five Years North (2021, Length: 1:26:00) (Streaming)

A documentary film following an undocumented Guatemalan boy and the Cuban American ICE officer patrolling his neighborhood. Connects with section 4.6.