A Thousand Suns

• This film explores the juxtaposition between sustainable ways of living by Indigenous people in Africa and the ways of living in the modern world. 
• The film focuses on the people of the Gamo Highlands of Ethiopia in the African Rift Valley.
• There is a content warning on this resource due to the partial nudity of Indigenous people in the video.
  

Positives

• There is an accompanying lesson plan for 9th-12th graders, which also features a Gamo fact sheet and a 32-page discussion guide. The lesson plan is available in English and Spanish.
• The lesson plan, Gamo fact sheet, and discussion guide are detailed and robust, making it easy for the teacher to screen this film and facilitate a discussion.

Additional Prerequisites

• The film briefly features some topless women between 20:30-21:40 at the Thousand Stars Festival.

Differentiation

• This film is great for English or social studies classes. You can also show this film in a science class when discussing soil, agriculture, or regenerative farming.
• The lesson plan features a mini-debate. One team of students argues that the modern world negatively influences the traditional Gamo culture while the other team argues that the modern world positively influences the traditional Gamo culture. Another group of students acts as judges of the debate. Make sure to split your students accordingly so that each student can find success in their role.