Reviews

Reviews

“Finally, a film that examines the critical role that native plants play in our landscapes. Hometown Habitat, featuring Douglas Tallamy, explores our land ethic and how we need to make radical changes in our plant selections to increase biodiversity, heal the earth, and find harmony with nature. This documentary should be included in every school curriculum.”
—Heather Holm, author of Pollinators of Native Plants

“Gardens are not prone to revolution, but Doug Tallamy has had a profound impact on the world of Horticulture this Millennium. Surely our gardens can still be beautiful, but Tallamy has made us aware that they are also a crucial element in the ecological fabric of Nature herself: in a world that continues to plow virgin prairie and fell ancient forests, we can restore habitat and provide a haven for pollinators and all manner of vertebrates and invertebrates that are ultimately essential to our well-being. Hometown Habitat, Stories of Bringing Nature Home is based on this vision. Doug provides the narrative thread which weaves together stories of remarkable people creating an array of beautiful gardens, that are also heroic habitats for insects, frogs and birds. Nature comes back, one garden at a time!”
—Panayoti Kelaidis, senior curator, Denver Botanic Gardens

“Hometown Habitat is a powerful film that explains not only why we need to change our landscaping attitudes and practices, but how change-makers are doing exactly that. Anyone who cares about the environment needs to watch this excellent documentary.”
—Kim Eierman, Founder of EcoBeneficial!

Hometown Habitat, Stories of Bringing Nature Home is a thoughtfully produced, information-packed 90-minutes of ecological education and environmental inspiration by award-winning film maker, Catherine Zimmerman. This collaboration with well-known author, educator, and entomologist Dr. Douglas Tallamy goes far beyond educating the viewer. Through portraits of a series of successful, nation-wide initiatives the film inspires us to get involved, promote native plants, and make a difference in our own landscapes and client projects.
There is environmental degradation all around us and the prevalence of media coverage focuses on the negative acts and consequences. Hometown Habitat is breath of fresh air and is a story of hope. The projects featured are varied and include both public and private projects, commercial and volunteer efforts, hundred-acre and pocket garden landscapes. The commonality is the awareness and commitment to making changes in the landscape that bring about healthier environments.
Tallamy provides running commentary throughout the film to help us understand that nature must be incorporated into each and every landscape, not set apart from where we live. With the arrival of summer and vacation season, many of us are planning trips to National Parks and other vestiges of nature. Tallamy’s point is that we shouldn’t have to travel beyond our own yards and communities to find nature. With a few changes in attitude and application, we can make nature integral throughout our communities. This video provides a rich mix of methods and motivation to set us in motion to repair the ecosystems within our reach and the inspiration to share the video’s contents with others to spread its reach even further. Congratulations to Zimmerman and Tallamy on this valuable and much-needed project.
—Penny Lewis, Executive Director, Ecological Landscape Alliance