Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

'Symphony of the Soil' draws a crowd

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Nearly 400 people turned out to see the Iowa premieres in Cedar Rapids and Ames of Symphony of the Soil. The new documentary by acclaimed filmmaker Deborah Koons Garcia unearths the marvelous complexities and reveals the human misuses of our global soil resource.

Garcia attended the March 29 event in Ames and joined a panel discussion afterward with ISU Agronomy professors Michael Thompson and Bob Horton. The panel was moderated by Leopold Center Distinguished Fellow Fred Kirschenmann, who appears in the film.

“Nobody’s going to be able to see this film and still treat soil like dirt,” Kirschenmann said.

The film hails soil as the protagonist in our planetary story, beginning with an explanation of how soils are created and moving toward global issues in agriculture, water and climate.  Students, professors, farmers and members of the public enjoyed fresh-popped popcorn provided by the Leopold Center while watching the 104-minute film in ISU’s Coover Hall.

Garcia is best known for her 2004 documentary The Future of Food, which centers on genetically-engineered organisms (GMOs). The film played a key role in Mendocino County, California, where voters passed one of the first bans on GMO crops. Garcia spoke to students in ISU’s Sustainable Agriculture Program prior to the film screening, discussing the challenges of transforming a complex science topic into a compelling, accurate narrative.  

“It’s everyone’s personal story, because everyone eats,” Garcia said.

Symphony of the Soil paints a panoramic picture of soil, moving from glaciers in Norway to active volcanoes in Hawaii to the microcosmic world inside a plant’s roots. The central portion of the film describes an array of sustainable agriculture practices, including no-till, composting, cover crops and organic farming. “For the average person, that’s really how we impact the soil the most—how we eat and what kind of agricultural system we support,” Garcia said.

In the panel discussion after the film, Horton and Thompson described soil erosion as the most serious environmental problem facing Iowa today. They noted the importance of site-specific management, in which landowners adapt their practices to the unique characteristics of their land.

“I’m really grateful for this film, that it can serve as communication about the soil, its intricacies and complexities,” Horton said.

The Ames event was only the third screening of Symphony of the Soil, following screenings in Cedar Falls and Washington DC. Garcia expects the DVD of the film to go on sale late this year. In the meantime, people can purchase several short films called Sonatas of the Soil that delve into particular topics, or download short clips called Grace Notes for free, at www.symphonyofthesoil.com.

Back to Leopold Letter Summer 2012