On Oct. 22, the 2015 Planet in Focus film festival honoured Stars/Broken Social Scene musician Amy Millan with its Canadian Eco-Hero Award for her work on the Canadian “I Am A Seed Saver” campaign. The campaign attracted high profile musicians, such as Leslie Feist, Sam Roberts, Blue Rodeo’s Jim Cuddy and Bruce Cockburn, to the cause. Living in Montreal, Millan promotes the saving of seeds, supporting local farmers and farmers markets, and encourages others to grow their own food._x000D_
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When asked about the evolution of plant breeding and genetically-modified organisms, Millan says: “What makes me nervous obviously is when you start having to copyright the seeds, and the seeds are getting blown on to another property and those people are getting charged. … I don’t know the answers. I just know that it can only help the community if we know where our food is coming from.” Meanwhile, this year’s International Eco-Hero award recognizes the University of Punjab physicist Vandana Shiva who is known for advocating against biotechnology and GMOs and wanting to preserve genetic diversity.
