Chris Schults at Grist got the scoop on this one, but Summer Rayne swears I’m the second to see it (well, other than Grist’s massive readership… doh!): she and Drew Patterson are co-hosting the new 13-part series Eco 4 the World.
Eco 4 the World is a multimedia environmental “edutainment” program designed in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The series contains an entertaining blend of celebrities, environmental personalities, politicians, and ordinary people making a personal difference. Meant to educate, entertain and engage, E4W takes its viewers around the globe to the latest eco happenings and trends. …The fast-paced magazine-style show has a modern, creative edge focused on positive attitudes and the big picture. Upbeat, fashionable, real and stylistically appealing, this is edutainment that sizzles and will keep you coming back each week.
E4W launches this spring throughout a number of multimedia platforms, including TV, internet, and mobile communications. The 13-part series with interviews with people like Sting, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and Mikhail Gorbachev, will debut throughout Asia to approximately 530 million signals and initially through Singapore on the 26 April 2006 via MediaCorp, the largest media broadcaster and provider in Singapore. Subsequent launches throughout the world will be announced at a later date.
If you want to get an early look, there’s a preview on Google Video. The early reviews from Grist commenters are negative, but I’m going to respectfully disagree (and, yes, yes, I’m a big SRO fan) — I think this will have real appeal with the younger demographic they want to reach, and the range of voices they’re bringing in shows that all are serious about the “edu-” side of edutainment. Now keep in mind I’m the former English professor that used to play Public Enemy’s “Burn Hollywood Burn” for his composition students to get them talking about argument… they labeled me “old school,” but still got the idea… I think UNEP and Big Durian Productions have created a powerful tool here for getting younger people thinking about environmental issues beyond “it’s a good thing to recycle…” Fire away… And thanks to Summer for sending along the news…
Categories: summerrayneoakes, television, environmental