Wednesday night in Carbondale, citizens and artists can work together to promote public lands.
Carbondale local Deborah Colley is adding an element to her film, “Letters to Congress: A WILD Sanity,” with the goal of expanding the impact of the film.
Colley said the goal of her film is to inspire political action on behalf of public lands. Because art evokes emotion, she believes it has an important role to play in protecting these areas.
"Just that tie between those beautiful places that are available to all of us and are a part of our national identity and heritage and how they really do have like a deep connection with so many of our lives," said Colley.
A new addition to the campaign is “Wild Cards to Congress.” To create a Wild Card, citizens write a testimonial about what public lands mean to them. Their words are then illustrated by a local artist.
Colley said the Wild Cards are a way to invite even more voices to advocate for wilderness.
"I think that if we diversify the art representation and the voice representation that it will hit somebody somewhere," she said.
The screening of “Letters To Congress: A WILD Sanity” is this evening at the Launchpad. Attendees can also join a creative writing workshop to help them write their own Wild Card.