The winner of two Academy Awards (Best Documentary Feature and Best Song in 2006), An Inconvenient Truth is credited as one of the first films that raised public awareness about the dangers of climate change. As global warming is the greatest environmental challenge today, the power of film about this serious subject is undeniable.

Released in 2006 by Paramount and producers Lawrence Bender, Scott Burns and Laurie David of Participant Media, the Davis Guggenheim-directed documentary grossed nearly $50 million worldwide and helped its narrator, former United States vice president Al Gore, win a 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

In the documentary, Gore warns us about global warming and climate change. He explains the role of humans and the science behind global warming.

16 years later, we are still talking about An Inconvenient Truth as we are still ignoring its warnings.

The film is the 11^th highest-grossing documentary in the United States and was the first to give a platform to this very complex and important topic. After seeing the documentary, people around the world finally understood the reality of the climate crisis. It was a wake-up call for many and had a greater impact on public awareness of climate change than any scientific report.

Before 2006, no one had given much thought to the climate change issue. Watching this documentary raised questions about the human role in global warming. As individuals, what can we do? What steps should we take personally to lighten our environmental footprint?

Consuming better-designed products to create less waste is one way. We can switch to alternative energy sources like solar or wind energy. More importantly, we can just simply turn off the unused lights and water in our houses.

A decade after An Inconvenient Truth brought climate change into the center of popular culture, the follow-up documentary An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power was released. The follow-up documentary shines a light on those around the world who are feeling the effects of climate change. It spreads further awareness of the problem and explores some possible solutions.

The HFPA interviewed An Inconvenient Truth’s producer Lawrence Bender who is on the Advisory Board for the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability and a member of the Global Zero campaign on January 12, 2022. Bender told us, “Climate crisis is a big part of my life. Somehow, leaving this world a better place than how we entered it became a big part of my life.  I think it comes from my parents. Activism is just part of my blood.

The three things I tend to spend more time on is the global warming, the climate crisis and our nuclear proliferation. There are so many problems in the world now. So, I coach about the environment at UCLA and we have a great Ph.D. program. We have great undergraduate students that we are educating in all different areas. So, it’s really a big part of my life.”

An Inconvenient Truth is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.