Filmmaker tells wolves’ story
Screening Friday at the Back Space
The
acronym of her Web of Life Foundation, which promotes the connection of
humans to wildlife and wild places, denotes the animal on which Elke
Duerr is concentrating her current efforts – the wolf.
Enlarge photo
STEVE LEWIS/Durango Herald
Elke Duerr, a filmmaker and conservationist who lives in Albuquerque, is
in town this week educating school children about Mexican gray wolves.
Duerr, a speech and language
therapist in Albuquerque, talked about the Mexican gray wolf recovery
program to 200 students at Durango High School on Wednesday. She will
make presentations to elementary school students today and Friday.
She travels about 15,000 miles a year around the Southwest with her educational program.
Duerr
will show her 73-minute documentary titled “Stories of Wolves: The
Return of the Lobo” at the Back Space Theatre on Friday evening at 6:30
p.m.
Filming was in New Mexico, Arizona and a captive-wolf-breeding program in Salem, N.Y.
“We
want to help humans realize the beauty and purpose of all life forms,”
Duerr said during a stop at The Durango Herald. “It’s our mission to be a
voice for the voiceless – our Earth, animals and plants.”
Duerr
was born in Germany and lived there until she was 22 year old. She came
to the United States with a degree in communicative disorders and now
is an American citizen.
“I’ve
always been fascinated by wolves even though there were none in Germany
while I was growing up,” Duerr said. “The production of the film, 15
months of shooting and four months of editing, had its premier a year
ago.
The film comprises largely
interviews with people who live in wolf country and have contact with
the gray wolf such as ranchers and Native Americans.
“I’ve
shown the film in Arizona, New Mexico, Germany and Slovenia,” she said.
“I wanted to show it in Europe to state that the fairy tale about Red
Riding Hood being eaten by a wolf, which started there, ended there.”
Wolves don’t prey on people, Duerr said.
The
Mexican gray wolf is the smallest subspecies of the gray wolf and the
most endangered land mammal in North America, Duerr said. The last count
estimated their number at 58 in New Mexico, Arizona and Northern
Mexico.
“It’s up to people whether the wolf survives,” Duerr said.
Duerr also is involved with programs to protect the river otter, mustangs and wild bison.
On Tuesday, the foundation will pick up one of 100 Prius vehicles that Toyota has donated to nonprofits, Duerr said.
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