The Environmental, Psychological, Emotional Impact of Occupation w/ Actress, Director CHERIEN DABIS

About this episode

Cherien Dabis discusses the environmental and emotional impacts of occupation in Gaza, reflecting on ecological destruction and generational trauma.

In this special environmental highlights edition, Dabis reflects on the "ecocide" occurring in Gaza—the loss of ancient orange trees, the contamination of 95% of the water supply, and the long-term chemical impact on the soil. She explores how this ecological destruction mirrors the "continuous Nakba" and the inheritance of generational trauma. My guest today is  Cherien Dabis .  She’s a filmmaker and actress who has spent much of her career trying to fill the silences in the American narrative. In 2022, she became the first Palestinian to receive an Emmy nomination. She has worked on everything from  The L Word  to  Ozark, Only Murders in the Building  to the hit Netflix series  Mo , always with an eye toward breaking the one-dimensional mold that has historically defined Arab representation in the West. But her latest project is perhaps her most ambitious yet. It’s a film called  All That’s Left of You . It follows one Palestinian family across three generations, beginning in 1948 and ending in 2022. It is a story of exile and memory, and it’s Jordan’s official submission for this year’s Academy Awards. (0:00) Ecological Loss in Gaza…

People in this episode

Guest: Cherien Dabis

Topics covered

• environmental impact
• ecocide
• generational trauma
• Palestinian identity
• ecological destruction
• filmmaking

Keywords

• Gaza
• Cherien Dabis
• ecocide
• environmental impact
• Nakba
• Palestinian identity
• All That’s Left of You
• filmmaking
• generational trauma

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: All That’s Left of You, The L Word, Ozark, Only Murders in the Building, Mo

Places: Gaza

More episodes of One Planet Podcast · Climate Change, Politics, Sustainability, Environmental Solutions, Renewable Energy, Activism, Biodiversity, Carbon Footprint, Wildlife, Regenerative Agriculture, Circular Economy, Extinction, Net-Zero

• How Flowers Made Our World: DAVID GEORGE HASKELL on Deep Time, Plant Intelligence & Listening to the Living World · April 9, 2026 · 1h 26m
• Listening to the Living World: Biologist DAVID GEORGE HASKELL on Flowers, Forests & Songs of Nature - Highlights · March 31, 2026 · 18 min
• The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else's Game with C. THI NGUYEN - Highlights · March 13, 2026
• Games that Help Us Reconnect with Nature & Our Sense and Wonder & Play with C. THI NGUYEN · March 13, 2026 · 1h 12m
• Alive in the Merciful Country with Author, Activist, Stand-up Comedian AL KENNEDY - Highlights · March 3, 2026 · 34 min
• The Climate of Truth: Lockdown Rewilding & Environmental Resistance with Author AL KENNEDY · March 3, 2026 · 1h 36m