5 must-watch documentaries for sustainability professionals
As much as anything, sustainability is a story. And like any good tale, it’s full of conflict, tension, consequences — and the possibility of change. These documentaries share chapters from that vast, interconnected narrative, offering perspectives on the stakes we face and the paths ahead. If you’re in this business, you want to have watched these compelling film explorations of it.
Sir David Attenborough, renowned naturalist and longtime narrator of BBC nature series, brings a lifetime of observation to bear in this personal cri de coeur. Part memoir, part cautionary tale, the film traces the loss of biodiversity over the course of Attenborough’s decades-long career and makes a clear-eyed case for a robust course reversal. Its truly breathtaking visuals and quiet authority serve as both stark warning and cause for hope.
Filmed deep in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest and produced by National Geographic Documentary Films, The Territory follows the Uru-eu-wau-wau people as they defend their land from encroaching settlers and deforestation. Co-produced with members of the Indigenous community — who filmed a portion of the footage themselves — the documentary is immersive and emotionally taut, raising questions about the climate crisis and sovereignty. Oh, yeah: The Territory won top honors at the Sundance Film Festival.
This short, animated doc pulls back the curtain on the lifecycle of consumer goods — from extraction and production to distribution, consumption and disposal. Created by activist Annie Leonard, The Story of Stuff shows how our consumerist culture fuels environmental and social harm, not least through “planned obsolescence”: products designed for short lifespans to drive constant replacement. Just 20 minutes long and delivered in a straightforward style, the film is an accessible first step in rethinking what we buy and why.
This heartening film makes the case that the climate crisis isn’t just about what we emit, but how we treat our soil. It spotlights the degradation caused by industrial agriculture — from tillage to synthetic fertilizers — and the cascading impacts on carbon, water and biodiversity. But all is not lost: Kiss the Ground introduces regenerative practices like crop rotation and composting that restore soil health and draw carbon out of the atmosphere. The New York Times called it “frenetic but ultimately persuasive and optimistic” — and when climate despair sinks in, it may be just the thing.
Last but not least: This Oscar-winning documentary follows former vice president Al Gore as he delivers an urgent and methodical presentation on climate change. Through clear visuals and data, the film strives to make global warming feel immediate and real. And it seems to have succeeded: An Inconvenient Truth is credited with propelling climate change from a niche concern to a global priority.
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