The Indiana Dunes National Park plans to celebrate its 57th anniversary with a screening of the documentary “Shifting Sands.”
The public can watch the movie from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 4 at at 1215 North State Road 49 in Porter.
“The movie tells the story of how local activists fought to save the Indiana Dunes and of the bigger issue of sustainability,” Supervisory Park Ranger Bruce Rowe said. “How do we maintain our way of life without destroying the natural world on which we all depend?”
Screened at several film festivals, the movie explores the biodiversity of the Indiana Dunes, where “rare plants grow in the shadows of smokestacks.” Made by filmmakers Pat Wisniewski, Tom Desch, Rana Sega, and the late Lee Botts, the film chronicles how activists with Save the Dunes worked to preserve the sandy shores along Lake Michigan from encroaching industry, getting it preserved as a National Lakeshore and eventually a National Park.
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Shifting Sands: On the Path to Sustainability tells the story of how one region, where rare plants grow in the shadows of smokestacks, sparked a movement for a national park; a movement which eventually led to game-changing environmental policies with worldwide impact and unique partnerships on the path to a more sustainable world.
The film often plays on Lakeshore PBS and is often used by local educators in class. It’s credited with the renewed push to make the Indiana Dunes into a National Park, which was first proposed by the inaugural National Park Service Director Stephen Mather but did not come to fruition until 2019.
The Indiana Dunes National Park also is hosting Saw-whet Owl Banding Demonstration on Thursdays-Sundays in early November. People can see Indiana’s smallest owl being banding at 7 p.m. on Nov 2, 3 and 4 and at 6 p.m. on Nov 5, 9, 10, 11 and 12 so long as the weather permits.
People can come half an hour early at 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4 and at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5 to get a closer look at a behind-the-scenes program.
“The participants will join experts from Indiana Audubon in putting up nets and performing the hourly checks to capture Saw-whet owls as they migrate through the area,” Browe said. “Participants will get to see the owls removed from the nets and banded at the field station. There will be a minimum of three checks each night.”
People must register at https://indianaaudubon.org/events/.