Green School Bali, 2011

LaserFilm’s journey through the world’s forests continues, on a planet increasingly at risk because of our greedy need for wood and natural materials. Unaware of the enormous dangers we are facing, we are handing over to our children a polluted planet, a degraded ecosystem, and unbreathable air. And the village communities are being forced to give up the environment that kept them alive for centuries. After the 2010 experience in Brazil, at the Janaina Natural Reserve, this year we have arrived in Bali, the Island of the Gods. A wonderful place where, unfortunately, very little of the divine remains, especially because of the concrete that in less than ten years has overtaken the forests and those marvellous rice fields that UNESCO intends to recognise as World Heritage.

On this Indonesian island we discovered the existence of a project founded by the Canadian John Hardy, who created an entirely bamboo-built school complex where young people from all over the world are educated according to a green mindset. Beyond its purely educational mission, the Green School is supported by the Meranggi Foundation, which promotes the culture of bamboo — a highly sustainable material that is still not used as it should be in various sectors, especially construction. The Green School is therefore tangible proof that certain types of bamboo are extremely suitable for building, with a very low impact on the environment and forests. In fact, bamboo supports the ecosystem. The project involves creating true plantations of specific bamboo species that do not naturally grow in Bali.

Thousands of seeds are imported from the nearby island of Java and then distributed free of charge to Balinese farmers who, after the plant’s natural growth cycle, are free to sell them under a fair-trade model. To date, over 15,000 seeds have been planted, but the goal for the coming years is to turn Bali into a thriving haven for the cultivation and use of this precious plant, creating new economic and social opportunities for local communities. This calendar is dedicated to the children of Bali and to all those tropical countries whose future is threatened, now more than ever, by deforestation. We hope that projects like the Green School will help build in younger generations a mindset of respect and love for the environment.

Andrea Di Nardo, CEO of LaserFilm