The ferry over the beautiful Periyar river near Eloor, an island with 160 chemical factories. One of these factories produces DDT, a dangerous pesticide still widely used in India. In case of an accident people are trapped on the island, because the ferry closes at 9 PM.  Jose, appointed by Greenpeace as first river keeper in Asia, fights against the pollution of his river. But it doesn’t make him popular amongst his fellow islanders, because many are dependent on these factories. Photo: Pipaluk Knudsen-Ostermann

After a nine hour flight I arrived at Mumbai airport, where Jan and Subrato (local producer) picked me up. The next morning we met up with the rest of the crew and first went shopping for my tropical travel outfit. Cameraman Viraj understood exactly what I needed, and his friend directed us to the right shops through her mobile. Traffic in Mumbai (25 million inhabitants) is pretty busy and intense so we spent much time in the car.

After 9 awards on International Film Festivals for the short film in which two girls examine the slow poisoning of their environment we’re already working on the long film. We follow Pipaluk Knudsen-Ostermann who’s traveling all over the world to the sources of this pollution. “That we, especially young women, can’t eat our food anymore. The mere thought of it made me crazy.” In different continents she faces heart breaking dilemma’s. The premiere of the feature length film is planned for the fall 2010. Photo Bertrand Lozay

In Tanzania Pipaluk Knudsen-Ostermann (picture) meets film maker Glory Mollel and discovers how difficult it is to get rid of DDT in an East African village. People can't afford the more expensive alternatives and need something against malaria mosquitoes and flees. The governments of neighboring countries Uganda and Mozambique start indoor spraying of DDT again, leaving the farmers - who just started to grow ecological cotton - with a harvest they can't sell anymore. A solution seems far away. Photo Viraj Singh