If you want to know what we humans are doing to our only home, then check out our list of 12 best environmental documentaries on YouTube.
For a long time, people have neglected the fact that we are hurting our planet. All the signs were there, but for some reason, the majority of the population failed to recognize just how hazardous are our actions to the environment we live in. This ignorance led to numerous problems we are facing now, and with whom the future generations will have to deal as well. Take a climate change for example. The polar caps are melting, the climate patterns are changing, but most of the world population is still unable to take a hint.
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Global warming, air pollution, loss of biodiversity, ozone layer depletion, water contamination are just some of the direct consequences of human actions. Environmental documentaries are trying to shed some light on these and similar issues by introducing the severity of these problems to the public and trying to raise their awareness. This is the most important goal that environmental documentaries want to accomplish and they are making a significant result. Documentaries are more available and people gladly watch them. If you have a Netflix account, you can stop binge watching The Flash for an hour or two and check out these of 11 Best Environmental Documentaries on Netflix Streaming in 2015.
For a long time, it was up to independent filmmakers and small organizations to lead this war. Luckily, the things are changing and they are getting much-needed help. Just remember the impact of An Inconvenient Truth from Al Gore. This documentary alone has moved millions of people to take action and try to change things. Many people say that the documentary was a wake – up call and that only after they saw An Inconvenient Truth, they have realized the extent of the consequences that climate change is bringing. Also, there is Leonardo DiCaprio. After he had got his first Oscar after six nominations, he spent his award speech talking about climate change. His Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation is dedicated to environmental issues more than ever, and with his foundation, he is helping others to have their words heard. He too has recognized the importance of documentary movies, and made the documentaries The 11th Hour and Before The Flood that focus on the issue of climate change. With more people involved and willing to help the environment, the things are looking a bit brighter.
Now, let’s get to our list of 12 best environmental documentaries on YouTube. To find the list, we took the recommendations from Eluxe Magazine, Uproxx and New York Film Academy among others. Then we checked their availability on YouTube. The ones that were available for free in full on YouTube were ranked based on their IMDB rating. We have to note that some of them may not be uploaded with the author’s consent, so watch them while they are still available. Let’s make the planet green again!
12. If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
IMDb Rating: 7.2
The radical environmental organization under the name Earth Liberation Front was referred as the biggest terrorist threat in America by the FBI. This documentary offers you an insight into the organization following Daniel McGowan, a member of the Earth Liberation Front who faced a life in prison sentence after he committed arson against timber companies in Oregon that caused millions in damage.
11. The Island President
IMDb Rating: 7.3
The documentary follows the President of Maldives Mohamed Nasheed, who brought democracy to the country after 30 years, stepping into an even greater battle. This time, the sole existence of his country is in question. Maldives are the lowest-lying country in the world, facing to be overflowed due to the rise of ocean level. This documentary is a perfect reminder of the consequences that global warming is able to produce.
10. Tapped
IMDb Rating: 7.4
This documentary that is number 10 on our list of best environmental documentaries on YouTube focuses on the bottled water industry and its role in people’s health while also striking the issues of climate change and air pollution. Big companies are taking over the water resources and by selling bottled water they are not just making a criminal profit but also contribute directly to pollution. According to the movie, almost 30 billion plastic bottles containing water are bought in the United States while just 20 percent of them end up being recycled. If this doesn’t make you think twice about buying a bottle of Pure Life Purified Water, nothing will.
9. Crude
IMDb Rating: 7.5
If you want to see the effect of the oil industry, this may well be the documentary for you. It follows the events revolving around $27 billion worth lawsuit made by 30,000 Ecuadorians against Chevron Corporation since the company’s oil drilling activities are directly polluting rainforests of Ecuador. The documentary shows both sides of the story and raises a question about the influence that the big corporations have on politics. Although the movie predicted that the case will take up to 10 years to resolve, Ecuadorian court made a $18 billion judgment against Chevron, reducing it later to $9.5 billion. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York later ruled that the judgment unenforceable.
8. Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
IMDb Rating: 7.5
Angela Sun’s documentary, next ono the list of best environmental documentaries on YouTube takes us to the Midway Atoll, a place that is far away from the civilization but has great importance. This place is known for its high concentration of plastics and other trash that is collected there from three continents. The documentary discusses the extent of unnecessary plastic consumption and the long-term consequences of ocean poisoning.
7. Gasland
IMDb Rating: 7.7
Gasland focuses on the raising natural gas drilling industry in the United States. The documentary’s creator Josh Fox received a $100,000 offer from a big energy company that wanted to lease his property in order to drill for natural gas. After that, he embarked on the journey to find the effect of this industry in a west part of the country where the majority of the drilling is happening. Due to the controversial method of hydraulic fracturing used to drill for gas, air and water sources are contaminated and that proved to have direct effects on peoples’ heath.
6. Flow: For Love of Water
IMDb Rating: 7.7
Most of us take our access to clean drinking water for granted, while there are places where drinking water means the difference between life and death. This documentary, the next one on our list of best environmental documentaries on YouTube looks to raise awareness about the water crisis and people who don’t have access to clean water. A significant part of the documentary also focuses on the “privatization” of water and rise of bottled water industry.
5. The Last Mountain
IMDb Rating: 7.8
One small community in West Virginia has to face a big company that wants to blow up one of the last big mountain ranges in that area and extracts the coal using the controversial mountaintop removal method that has been proven to cause environmental and health issues. The Last Mountain follows their story and raises questions about the effects of mining and burning coal.
4. A River of Waste: The Hazardous Truth about Factory Farms
IMDb Rating: 8.0
Do you know what kind of meat you eat? Well, if you want to find out, check this documentary, one of the best environmental documentaries on YouTube. Factory farms raise animals on much larger scales than they should. The animals are crammed into tight buildings and often are given chemicals to boost their growth. These factory farms are the place from which most of the meat on your supermarket’s shelves comes from. This documentary will show you the whole process without any sugar coating. Most people will find it as one of the most disturbing on our list of 12 best environmental documentaries on YouTube and according to testimonies it even made people to become vegetarians.
3. Under the Dome
IMDb Rating: 8.1
For a long time now, air pollution in China is a much greater problem than in other parts of the world and it has become a major threat to the health of Chinese people. Former TV anchor Chai Jing decided to make this documentary about the problem after she found out that her daughter had a tumor developed while still in her womb. She is certain that the air pollution caused the tumor. The documentary focuses on China’s inability to tackle this problem and has been compared to An Inconvenient Truth in terms of impact. The documentary was available online for 4 days in China and was viewed by more than 300 million people before it became unavailable. The documentary is in Chinese, but there are English subtitles available.
2. Racing Extinction
IMDb Rating: 8.2
Predictions are that half of all species on the Earth will be extinct by the end of the century thanks to the human efforts. Racing Extinction shows just how fatal we are for every other life form. Some species on our planet can’t adapt to the changes we caused and that leads to their disappearance. The documentary features appearances from several notable public figures including Elon Musk.
1. Home
IMDb Rating: 8.6
We’ve come to the highest rated documentary on our list of 12 best environmental documentaries on YouTube. Home contains aerial shots from 54 countries that took 18 months to be shot and show how humans are causing ecological misbalance and environment changes on Earth. Unlike some other documentaries, this one was immediately available for free online ton watch and download, gaining 400,000 views in the first day on YouTube alone.
