Acclaimed Irish filmmakers Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney embarked in mid-October on their multi-city U.S. college campus tour to screen and discuss their newest film, Mine Your Own Business -- the first documentary to ask hard questions of enviro-activist groups. In Mine Your Own Business, McAleer -- described by the Wall Street Journal as "Michael Moore..[but] without the smug liberal hypocrisy” -- travels the world as he investigates the consequences of environmental movements for poor communities in Europe, Africa and South America. On his journey he meets Gheorghe Lucian, an unemployed miner from a small village in Romania that has been gripped by poverty and unemployment ever since a government-owned mine shut down. The film shows how some environmentalists will stop at nothing to block construction of a new mine– a mine that will bring jobs, better living conditions, and an overall better live to Gheorghe and his family. Mine Your Own Business also examines other anti-development movements by environmental extremists to block mine construction in Madagascar and Chile. Gheorghe and Phelim travel to these impoverished communities, and along the way meet people who are desperately waiting for these large mining projects that they know will bring a decent job, a house and an education and better life for their children – only to be stymied by outside activists who claim they know what’s best. According to McAleer, "What we found was not pretty. Much of the activists claimed about various anti-mine campaigns was based on exaggeration and misleading use of information. Even worse was the attitude of foreign environmentalists who lead these campaigns towards the people they claimed to be working for,” McAleer added. "They really do believe that people in remote areas are ‘poor but happy.’ Of course, the people who live in poverty disagree.” About the Filmmakers: Phelim McAleer is a Fellow of the Moving Picture Institute, a not for profit organization dedicated to advancing liberty through the medium of film. He is also the joint managing director of New Bera Media, an independent documentary production company. Phelim McAleer directed, produced and wrote Mine Your Own Business, the world's first anti-environmentalist documentary. Additionally, McAleer was an Associate Producer, second unit director and researcher on the documentary "Return to Sender" which aired on Canada's CBC in February 2005. McAleer has also worked as a journalist with the Irish News, the Sunday Times and an East European correspondent for the Financial Times. Ann McElhinney is a Fellow of the Moving Picture Institute, a not for profit organization dedicated to advancing liberty through the medium of film(thempi.org). She is also is a journalist, broadcaster and producer and joint managing director of New Bera Media, an independent documentary production company. Ann McElhinney directed and produced Mine Your Own Business. She is a co-producer and presenter of The Search for Tristan's Mum (2005), an hour-long documentary for RTE. McElhinney was an Assistant Producer on the BBC Spotlight documentary Romanian Twins (2004) and was featured in CBC's Return to Sender (2005). Previously, McElhinney worked as a journalist with the BBC, Irish Times, RTE, Sunday Times and Sunday Tribune. She has regularly contributed reports and analysis for RTE's Six One News, Morning Ireland and World Report and has been a regular contributor to Orla Barry's show on Newstalk 106 and Today FM's The Last Word show. For more information about Mine Your Own Business, please visit www.mineyourownbusiness.org.

Do you think that enviro-activists cause more harm than good? yes no