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Climate Change Documentary Scoops Two Oscars

Climate change documentary "An Inconvenient Truth", made by former US presidential candidate Al Gore, won two Oscars at last night's Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles. The documentary won the awards in the categories for "Best Documentary Feature" and "Best Original Song".

An Inconvenient Truth

Since leaving mainstream American politics after losing out to George W. Bush, amid much controversy, in the 2000 US Presidential elections, Al Gore has become increasingly involved in media and environmental campaigning. These two areas have overlapped in the making of the Oscar wining documentary "An Inconvenient Truth", in which Gore illustrates the potentially catastrophic effects of climate change.

Given that the style of the documentary is quite low key, the winning of an academy award is all the more impressive. The Oscar for "Best Documentary Feature" has clearly been awarded for its rich and pertinent content, rather than stunning visuals. Director Davis Guggenheim inter-cuts Gore's alarming lecture on global warming with film footage to further illustrate the points being made.

Presidential Candidacy Joke

Whilst on stage at the awards with actor Leonardo DiCaprio, Gore joked with the audience by making reference to the speculation that he may announce his running in the 2008 US Presidential Election race. He began, "Even though I honestly had not planned on doing this, I guess, with a billion people watching it's as good a time as any. So, my fellow Americans, I'm going to take this opportunity right here and now to formally announce my intention... ", but then the music, usually used to shorten long acceptance speeches, cut in and drowned out the end of the sentence, much to the amusement of DiCaprio and the audience.

A Call for Action

Speaking in a much more serious tone during his acceptance speech, Gore said, "People all over the world - we need to solve the climate crisis. It's not a political issue, it's a moral issue. We have everything we need to get started with the possible exception of the will to act. That's a renewable resource - let's renew it. "

You can take your first steps to reduce your impact by following our tips for helping to avert climate change (click here).

Buy the DVD

An Inconvenient Truth is available to buy on DVD. Click on the link below to purchase it from Amazon