SynopsisThe film Blood Diamond begins with a man and his son walking down a road in Sierra Leone. It is evident that the man Solomon is a loving father to his son Dia. They talk about Dia's future as a doctor until Salomon sees a car full of Revolutionary United Front (RUF) soldiers coming down the road. RUF soldiers are there to kidnap young men and turn them into child soldiers, as well as taking some adult men to work in the diamond fields. The RUF cuts off the hands of some adult men, but decides to spare Solomon and use him in the diamond business. They kidnap Dia where they later abuse him and brainwash him into becoming a child soldier. The film then cuts to Solomon working in a diamond field where he watches another man get killed for taking a diamond, while all of this is happening he finds a giant. diamond that he hides under his toes and takes to bury it while he pees. He is caught, but fortunately avoids being killed because at the same time the diamond field is bombed and Solomon and his captures are arrested. It is here that Archer and Solomon meet. Archer overhears the RUF soldier harassing Solomon about the huge diamond and gets himself and Solomon bailed out. Archer's friend saves him and he also bails out Solomon in an attempt to get the big diamond. Archer is promised half the profits and a reunion with his family if he shows Archer the diamond. Solomon refuses to help Archer. At this point, a woman named Maddy, a journalist who is writing an article about blood diamonds, is introduced to Solomon. Solomon agrees to lead them to the diamond with Maddy's help, exposing the world to the terror of the blood diamonds. They return to the diamond field where they can recover...... middle of paper...... It's easy to trust labels and outward appearances. I see this with the green washing marketing strategies used by so many companies these days. Even NGOs are increasingly resembling a business model rather than that of a traditional NGO. A fraction of my donation actually goes to foreign aid to certain businesses. It is important to choose companies and NGOs that are transparent in their operations. Transparency allows consumers to make informed decisions. It was interesting to come to this course with an environmental background because I didn't think I could relate so much to this course. Community development is largely environmental and social. I am a more informed consumer because of my experiences this semester. It's exciting and scary to see the world from this perspective, but I feel like I've grown with the knowledge I've gained in this course..