Activist Annie Leonard wanted to convey to kids that excessive consumption harms the Earth. So she made a simple web video. Now, millions have watched her film, The Story of Stuff, and thousands of teachers around the country are using it as a teaching tool in their classrooms. New York Times environment reporter Leslie Kaufman joins The Takeaway with a look at how a web phenomenon is helping to make up for textbooks that can't keep pace with evolving scientific understanding about the environment.

For more, read Leslie Kaufman's article, A Cautionary Video About America’s ‘Stuff’, in the New York Times.

You can view here The Story of Stuff: