The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind

On Father's Day, after a day filled with playing board games, reading, and going for a walk, we ended the evening as a family by watching The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind on Netflix. The movie is based on a true story and takes place in Malawi, Africa. The people living in smaller villages are struggling with crops as drought and flooding take place. When trees are sold for logging, additional flooding ruins crops before the dry season begins, causing vast hunger. To survive, crops must be planted during the dry season, but need water. One of the teenagers in the village builds a windmill to pump water from a well to water the crops.

Here in the U.S., particularly in the Midwest where we live, drinking water is not a problem. Yes, there are droughts, but for the most part, acquiring clean drinking water is never a problem. There are a few areas in the U.S. where acquiring clean drinking water is more of a problem, but the percentage of the U.S. population that never has to worry about clean water is very high. That is not true elsewhere in the world. This movie was a good look at the importance of water and many areas do not have easy access. Water for crops needed for food can be scarce. Drought can be more intense. And areas where drought is intense can have more intense flooding at different times of the year, complicating the growing of crops for food. Add in climate change, and you have a worsening situation across the world.

In the end, this is a feel good success story, but that is not the case everywhere.