Press Releases

Marilyn and Hal Weiner Receive $1.1 Million Grant from National Science Foundation

For Immediate Release MARILYN AND HAL WEINER RECEIVE $1.1 MILLION GRANT FROM NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Producers Marilyn and Hal Weiner's Washington, DC production and distribution company (Screenscope) was just awarded a $1.1 million matching grant from the National Science Foundation for their PBS series, JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH.

Shot on location around the world and featuring three one-hour specials each year, the initiative is the first continuing television series to deal exclusively with important environmental and sustainable development issues.

The first three episodes of JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH, which were broadcast last spring, focused on rivers, agriculture and mega-cities.

The next three episodes will be:

"Seas Of Grass" explores the endangered ecological balance of the world's grasslands and their effect on food security. Locations include the Great Plains of North America, Africa's Rift Valley, the Pampas in Argentina, and the Steppes of Asia.

"Hot Zones" shows just how closely our own health is dependent on that of the environment. This episode will visit locations where unsustainable agriculture, polluted rivers and changing climates have had serious human health consequences. Locations include the United States, Kenya, Peru and Bangladesh.

"On The Brink" focuses on case studies that link national security with issues like deforestation, soil erosion, water depletion, famine, surging refugee populations and global climate change. Locations include the Gulf Coast of the United States, Haiti, India, the Middle East and Mexico.

Outreach activities for Season Two will include:

An informal community-based outreach program designed by the Chicago Academy of Sciences and presented in ten major science museums for the general public and neighborhood youth groups such as the Girl Scouts, Boys and Girls Clubs and the National 4-H.

Activity kits and teaching guides for both formal and informal education.

Live interactive science workshops on the World-Wide Web.

Strategic partnerships with organizations such as the Smithsonian Institution, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the North American Association for Environmental Education.

JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH has been honored at the Columbus, Houston, United States and CINE Film Festivals, winning five gold, a silver and bronze medals. The project's international distributor (TVF) expects the series to be in most major overseas television markets by the Fall of 2000 and with repeat broadcasts, each episode will ultimately yield a world-wide audience of 20 million people.

In addition to the National Science Foundation, JOURNEY TO PLANET EARTH's underwriters include NASA, the Kellogg Foundation, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, Continental Airlines, the World Bank, the Rockefeller Foundation, the American Honda Foundation and the Department of Agriculture.