by Katie Anderholm
Over the course of our Earth’s four-billion-year lifespan, we have succumbed to five mass extinctions. It is no small feat that our current society is years ahead of schedule for the next one. David Attenborough, a British broadcaster, writer, and biologist, recounts his life’s work in the documentary A Life on Our Planet, in an effort to bring awareness to society’s impact on the remaining wilderness.
Embed from Getty ImagesIn order to set the mood for a look into humanity’s destruction of nature, Attenborough begins in Pripyat, Ukraine, to show the abandoned city resulting from the nuclear devastation at Chernobyl. The town has been vacant for the last 50 years following the exodus of civilization. He proceeds to delineate his lifelong career of exploring the wilderness of the world from his accounts of the savannahs of Africa to his introductions to tribes in New Guinea. Attenborough spent the better half of his career acquainting his audience with wildlife across the world that was previously unavailable to the masses.
The presentation of nature and wildlife evolved into a recognition of the impact that deforestation, over-fishing, technological advancements, and the increase in carbon output had on the environment. Throughout the film, coinciding with his explorations, they provide statistics exhibiting the increases in population and carbon emission outputs, with their correlation to the decrease in remaining wilderness. Attenborough had traveled to 39 countries and covered 1.5 million miles in pursuit of wildlife for his film, Life on Earth, to conclude that animals were becoming harder to pinpoint. With footage acknowledging the decline in wildlife, he recognized in A Life on Our Planet, “We have pursued animals to extinction many times in our history, but now that it was visible, it was no longer acceptable.”
With society’s attention now shifted towards the growing impact that technological advances and a growing population have on the environment, Attenborough advised for the restoration of stability to our planet. In an attempt to educate people about the welfare of animals, Attenborough’s use of digital mapping showed the deprivation of rainforests, and his macabre films of inhumane whaling practices fueled emotional outrage. The insight given to the public about the remaining wilderness helps solidify Attenborough’s concerns. He emphasized greatly that, “To restore stability to our planet, we must restore its biodiversity.”
Attenborough’s “if not me, then who?” attitude when questioned at the IMF Spring Meeting in 2019 exemplified his advocacy mission. A Life on Our Planet takes viewers on a journey through Attenborough’s personal experiences to provoke emotions about essential issues. This approach was both informative and fear-inducing, which helped portray the severity of the destruction of the remaining wilderness on Earth.
David Attenborough has curated a collection of impactful films throughout his career that encapsulate his life’s mission to defend the wild. As I watched A Life on Our Planet, his passion for advocacy transcended through the screen. His call to action, paired with conceivable solutions, was able to change the tune of the film from helplessness to hope. I aspire to replicate his approach in my career by not just bringing attention to issues but also providing viable solutions to help mediate them.
Works Cited
David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet (2020) Movie Script | SS. https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=david-attenborough-a-life-on-our-planet