With an Award from the Tribeca X Film Festival, “A Vital Sun” Proves the Possibility of Business Doing Better for People and the Planet
Faculty | Oct 10, 2025 | Gabelli School of Business
Documentary Film Features the Inspiring Story of a Community in Egypt Committed to Regeneration Based on the Principles of Humanistic Management
On June 10, A Vital Sun, the latest release from a documentary film series co-produced by Michael Pirson, Ph.D., the James A. F. Stoner Endowed Chair in Global Sustainability and Leading People and Organizations area chair at the Gabelli School of Business, was awarded the Environmental Impact Award at the Tribeca X Award Film Competition. The short film, which was co-produced and directed by Emmy-award-winner Alison Bartlett and released in association with the International Humanistic Management Association and the Gabelli School’s Center for Humanistic Management, details the extraordinary story of the SEKEM community, a society and workplace founded by the idea that sustainable development has the capacity to help every individual realize their full potential while creating successful, responsible businesses.
Narrated by Ben Stiller, the story begins with Dr. Ibrahim Abouleish’s journey from Austria to Egypt in 1975, when he began to bring to life his vision for turning a desert into an oasis through engineering innovations and sustainable business models while remaining committed to the wellbeing and human dignity of the people who helped him build the community. Told through the experiences of Helmy Abouleish, the founder’s son and current chief executive officer of SEKEM Holdings, as well as other members throughout SEKEM, the film explores how carbon was removed from the air and put into the earth, regenerating the land while helping the people in the community thrive. “Everything has a life,” according to the SEKEM philosophy, and making everyone who lives and works there feel at home and valued has created a successful commercial operation while exploring the possibility of human potential. SEKEM is a model that demonstrates what humanity can achieve by adopting the principles of humanistic management, thereby redefining what success can and should look like in today’s world.
“With the impending effects of climate change, there are so many lessons to be learned from successfully cultivating a vibrant, thriving society on land that was previously a barren desert while building a number of profitable businesses that have a global presence,” Michael Pirson, Ph.D., commented. “The story of SEKEM and other examples in the film series help businesses learn about the principles of humanistic management and how it can drive success in a responsible, sustainable and socially conscious way,”
A Vital Sun is the second release from the Reality Proves Possibility: Stories of Better Business documentary film initiative that enlightens and empowers global audiences and business students to use business and management as a force for good by telling the stories of those that have done it already. Five completed short films capture powerful, real-world examples of businesses that show how companies can prosper when leadership is rooted in care, compassion, and ethical responsibility. Each documentary features leaders and organizations that challenge the status quo by focusing on different areas of humanistic management: prioritizing employee wellbeing while achieving market success; solving social and environmental problems through business innovation; building cultures of care and dignity in competitive industries; and demonstrating that ethical business is good business.
“This is about showing rather than just saying that humanistic leadership is a universal possibility and showing its practical application. It’s not about where you’re from or how educated you are; it’s a mindset anyone can adopt,” Pirson added.
The films incorporate rigorous academic research and documented outcomes, cinema-quality production with storytelling techniques that are not only artistic endeavors, but are also strategic tools for corporate training, classroom learning, and public awareness. Plans are underway to secure wider distribution through business school networks and partnerships with global media companies. Pirson and the production team are actively seeking partners, sponsors and distributors to help them inspire action and scale the impact of this work to as wide of an audience as possible.
