On the eve of Earth Day, Upstate Films in Rhinebeck will host a screening of Legion 44, a globe-spanning, eye-opening climate documentary directed by Chatham-based filmmaker Leila Conners. The screening, set for Monday, April 21 at 6:30pm, will be followed by a conversation with Conners herself, moderated by Sustainable Hudson Valley, with support from the 4 Corners Carbon Coalition.
Legion 44 is not your standard climate crisis doc. This is not another montage of calving glaciers and anguished polar bears, nor a parade of platitudes. Instead, Conners—whose previous climate-focused films include Ice on Fire and The 11th Hour—spotlights a new vanguard: a diverse cohort of scientists, inventors, and entrepreneurs developing real solutions to remove carbon from the atmosphere. These are the quiet heroes of climate repair, and they are, as Conners puts it, “young inventors from around the world who will not stand idly by.”
Filmed on four continents, Legion 44 takes us from the labs of the Hudson Valley’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory—where the concept of carbon capture was first seriously modeled—to geothermally powered carbon removal systems in Kenya and seaweed farms floating in the Sargasso Sea. These are not thought experiments. These are blueprints, operational and adaptable, for removing atmospheric carbon at scale.
Importantly, Legion 44 doesn’t present carbon dioxide removal (CDR) as a techno-fix to excuse business-as-usual emissions. As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change itself has made clear, CDR is a complement to aggressive emissions cuts—particularly for “hard-to-transition” sectors like transport, industry, and agriculture. The film makes the case that decarbonization and removal must work in tandem, and fast.
The event is part of a broader educational initiative spearheaded by Sustainable Hudson Valley and Tree Media. In addition to the screening, SHV is launching a local demonstration project applying carbon-sequestering biochar on regional farms. Ten pilot farms will work with Cornell Cooperative Extension to track improvements in soil health and crop yields, showing how climate action can benefit the bottom line.
Melissa Everett, executive director of Sustainable Hudson Valley, sees the project as both practical and poetic: “While our farmers feel abandoned and confused by the withdrawal of federal supports they’ve depended on, the promise of local innovation can be a lifeline,” she says. “Long-term soil health and carbon storage are a new opportunity, and we are poised to educate our communities to scale up these innovations.”
As for the title? The “Legion 44” refers to the 44th element on the periodic table—ruthenium—a nod to catalytic change. That spirit of transformation animates the film.
Conners puts it plainly: “They have taken real action and have figured out how to remove carbon pollution from the sky.”
Legion 44 screens at Upstate Films on April 21 at 6:30pm. Discussion with director Leila Conners follows. Presented in partnership with Sustainable Hudson Valley and 4Corners Carbon Coalition.
The River is an independent news outlet that produces in-depth, quality journalism and analysis about the Hudson Valley and Catskills regions. Learn more about our mission and ethics.
