Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury (UC)’s Sustainability team and EnviroSoc student club hosted a free screening of Our Blue World – A Water Odyssey on Monday 30 September, welcoming over 280 people from the Ōtautahi Christchurch community to explore humanity’s complex and evolving relationship with water.
This inspiring documentary, narrated by award-winning actor Liam Neeson, brought together students, staff, sustainability advocates and the wider community to reflect on how human actions can impact and rebalance global water systems. The film weaves together the stories of visionary people from around the world, including Aotearoa New Zealand, who have recognised the crucial role of water in all life on Earth, and dedicated their lives to improving the quality of our rivers and drinking water, often through simple solutions inspired by indigenous knowledge.
Before the screening, Ruby Gill-Clifford from UC’s Wellbeing Student Navigators team shared a new Eco Anxiety resource to help students manage their responses to escalating global sustainability challenges.
Immediately following, guests were invited to share kai and network with others. The Christchurch Envirohub brought their Stormwater Superhero Trailer to engage the participants in finding out more about stormwater, environmental honours students Hannah Whittall (who is also president of EnviroSoc) and Anna Meikle shared their research into Tī kōuka bundles for in-stream macro-invertebrate habitats, and UC Biodiversity Coordinator Seamus Moran led tūna (native eel) spotting in the nearby Haere Roa (Avon Stream).
The screening was also an opportunity for people to consider actions they can take to improve water quality and water conservation locally. As part of the registration, 79 people signed up to a new local water catchment group and Hayley Giulietta from Avon Ōtākaro Network spoke before the screening about working together on improving our local streams and rivers.
The event exemplified UC’s ongoing engagement with its community through thought-provoking, socially-relevant public talks and events that inspire hope and offer ideas for local action. Our Blue World not only highlights the challenges of climate change but also demonstrates that by blending ancestral wisdom, modern science, and technology, humanity can restore a more harmonious relationship with water. Water covers much of the planet, and therefore regulates weather systems, so our future depends on healing and nurturing our waterways.
