Anthropocenosis: reality or utopia? | Sergey Sotnikov | TEDxBaumanSt

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.

In this talk Sergey tells about Buzuluk bor - a young forest which is only four thousand years old. This presentation has two topics: "Anthropocenosis: reality or utopia?" and "Russia - a country of social initiatives." The first topic offers comparison of two ways of interaction between the young forest and the human society. The second topic is about the impact of public institutions in Russia on the consumer's relationship with the nature.

Sergey Sotnikov is a journalist, photographer, traveler, producer, CEO of Geometria Volga.

Hello.

Let's check the microphone.
Microphone is not working.

(Laughter)

Let's turn it on...

What about now? No.

One, one.

(Applause)

No matter where you were,
there was an ocean with splashing waves.

A huge green mass made of
minerals and living organisms

covered our planet so dense

that land could not even be seen.

All living things that you see now,
including yourself in the mirror,

came out of this mass.

Let's try to meditate.

Take a deep breath, close your eyes
and imagine yourself being a part of it.

If it worked for you,

you wouldn't need listen to anything
I have to say further.

If it didn't, let's remember the word
from 9th grade ecology textbook:

anthropocenosis.

(Laughter)

It sounds like a disease,
doesn't it? But it is not.

Environmental scientists use this word

to describe how the human culture

has become a decisive factor
in the life on the planet Earth.

People suddenly realized they can decide,

a popular expression today,

that their actions and behavior
directly effect the environment.

A system where a human expresses himself

through things and actions,

that's what anthropocenosis is.

And I'm a human - not an exception,
also express myself through actions.

That's why I decided to film
the movie "Buzuluksky Bor".

I manage...

But before that,
I live in Russia and I like it.

(Applause)

I have a son.

I manage a young promising photo agency

it's staff in the Russian Federation
alone consists of a half thousand people.

Last fall, our editorial staff

began planning to film a movie.

And our goal has been to tell the story
about this small forest,

now a national park,
not only in Russia but all over the world

because despite the fact
that it is so small, it's magnificent.

And when viewed from space,
we see that it is this small triangle,

this triangle resulted from the forest
growing at the mouth of a huge river

that flows into the great Caspian Sea.

The Caspian Sea itself was
also a part of the vast ocean.

And the river brought a lot of sand

on which the forest grew 10,000 years ago.

Exactly 200 years ago,

the scientists from the Kazan Institute
conducted the first studies

of a small forest patch
in the heart of Eurasia.

Nearby stood Buzuluk fortress.

Now, 200 years have passed,
and the fortress became a city,

and a small part of this unique forest in
the steppe is now a Russian national park.

Do you know
why Buzuluksky Bor National Park

is called the "jewel of the steppe"?

The fact is that it is located
on the shifting sands

and it's the largest woodland
in the Eurasian steppe zone.

With sand depth of 90 meters

it looks like a small Sahara desert
concentrated in the center of Eurasia.

And the pine forest is a green jewel

in the basin of the feather grass steppes.

All would be good,

but 200 years ago, people didn't know yet

that there was oil underneath the basin.

We slowly began to prepare for the filming
since it's a non-profit project

by planning our free time and resources.

And this spring, we went into the forest
for the first time to film first scenes.

Two months before it became known

that an oil company decided

since they are in Ecuador

their president would allow them
to extract oil in the national park.

If you haven't heard about it,
it was a big problem in Ecuador.

The President of Ecuador has resolved it
by saying the following,

"Let's try to collect the money,

otherwise, we will extract oil
in the national park.

Hey, world! Give us money,
we'll save the park!"

But Ecuador is a small developing country,

and we live in Russia.

So, the company received the tender.

(Applause)

Yes, this deserves an applause.

And exactly at the time
when we began filming,

a public organization purposefully
created by a large company

began the special task of informing people

about the necessity of oil drilling
in the national park

thus hoping to prevent
any public complaints.

Why was it necessary?
Because they were not the first.

In the 70s,

the government of the USSR

also tried to drill in the pine forest.

168 times and made 168 drilling holes

in the basin

using this method to search and find oil.

But Mr. Kosygin made
a decision that there is oil,

but a large country meant a lot of work.

So let's not touch the beautiful nature.

In 71 the holes were closed off
and partially liquidated.

Naturally, in 40 years,
some of them shattered.

The upper layer coming off completely
in some places discharging oil and gas.

That was exactly the reason used
by the oil companies to extract oil,

to receive money to close off the holes.

Wonderful logic.

However, our goal here is not to discuss

which oil company is good or bad.

It's their business.

It's their conscience.

We made the goal to make a movie

and tell the entire world
how beautiful this pine forest is.

This spring, we started a crowd company,

and several hundred thousand people
joined us.

Hundreds of people.

They contribute financially,
people with different income levels:

leaders of huge enterprises
in the Russian Federation,

common folk living in the forest provide
the film crew with shelter,

even food, I have to say,
because it's hard to work in the forest.

We try to tell the story
about the forest and its visitors.

Someone came to be cured.

Someone came to study the biogeocenosis.

Someone came to extract oil.

Someone like me to film a movie.
Someone simply to walk around with kids.

Each person comes to the forest
for a certain purpose.

And I think that we should make an effort

to keep this womb from which we came.

You know, I never liked

the poem by Brodsky,

"Don't leave the room,
don't make a mistake."

I prefer to leave the room

and wish for you to do the same.

Do not be afraid to leave the room,
do not listen to Brodsky.

Perhaps, by leaving the room
you will perform a great feat

and follow your dream.

(Applause)

Thank you.