Event Date: December 5 to 7, 2025

Report: Dr. Ugyal Tshering Lama Yolmo, Faculty, Department of Mass Communication, Darjeeling Hills University

The three day Environmental Film Festival held at the West Bengal Forest School Auditorium in Kurseong brought together filmmakers, students, scholars and local residents for a thoughtful engagement with contemporary environmental themes. The festival was organised as part of ALT EFF 2025, whose mission is to raise climate awareness through the expressive strength of cinema. Working with impact storytelling and participatory learning, the initiative aims to make environmental narratives accessible and meaningful for diverse audiences. The event in Kurseong was hosted by The Living Culture, Kurseong, and marked an important step in widening the reach of environmental cinema in the hills.

The festival presented films from many regions of the world, including a significant selection from India. These works explored a range of subjects such as ecological change, community resilience, conservation, sustainable practices and the human relationship with land and water. The final day was devoted to films from the eastern Himalayan region. This segment drew considerable interest, as it created space for voices and experiences that are often underrepresented. It allowed local filmmakers to present their work before an attentive audience and encouraged viewers to reflect on familiar landscapes through a new lens.

Darjeeling Hills University served as one of the institutional partners for the festival. The Department of Mass Communication represented the university through the participation of Dr. Smriti Rai and Dr. Ugyal Tshering Lama Yolmo. Seven students from Mass Communication and Political Science also volunteered throughout the programme, assisting with audience management, documentation, technical support and discussions. Their involvement offered them exposure to film curation and event organisation, and strengthened the university’s link with cultural initiatives in the region.

The festival has been regarded as a landmark effort for Kurseong and its surrounding areas. It introduced a structured approach to watching, reviewing and analysing films that deal with environmental issues. It also demonstrated how film festivals can foster community learning while supporting regional filmmaking. By providing a platform for local creators, the event encouraged them to continue developing stories rooted in their own environments and cultural contexts.

Darjeeling Hills University expresses its full support for this mission. Through the Department of Mass Communication, the university intends to remain closely engaged with such initiatives and help build a steady forum for filmmakers and film audiences in the hills. The experience of the festival showed that the region holds considerable interest in environmental storytelling, and that sustained collaboration can nurture a vibrant culture of film education and appreciation.

The Environmental Film Festival in Kurseong stands as a promising beginning. It strengthened dialogue on environmental concerns, broadened public understanding through cinema and encouraged active participation from young learners. Its success has created a constructive foundation for future editions that can deepen the region’s engagement with the environment and the arts.