Story highlights The festival runs from January 19-29

There is a slate of environmentally focused projects

(CNN) The 2017 Sundance Film Festival will feature race, rights and environmental issues in January.

At least, that's what the films selected seem to reflect.

Organizers announced the 66 films that will compete for honors at Sundance, along with a slate of environmentally focused projects to be featured as part of the Festival's New Climate program.

"My own engagement on climate change began more than 40 years ago, and the urgency I felt then has only grown stronger given its very real and increasingly severe consequences," Sundance founder Robert Redford said in a statement. "If we're going to avoid the worst-case scenario, then we must act boldly and immediately, even in the face of indifference, apathy and opposition."

The films selected for competition -- and others that will be screened as part of the Festival -- represent 32 countries and were chosen from more than 13,000 submissions.

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