An Ode to One of Our Blue Planet’s Strongest Advocates and Protectors
Happy World Ocean's Day and the release of Sir David Attenborough's Oceans
Welcome back to Human Nature. This week, we’re continuing our Way of Water series, where we are diving deep into the human relationship with water. This week, we’re discussing the legacy and potential final work of one of the fiercest protectors of our planet and its oceans, Sir David Attenborough.
Reminder that all free weekly posts will now be released on Monday afternoons, changing from our normal Sunday evenings.
Thanks, enjoy.
I can vividly remember the first time I heard Sir David Attenborough’s voice.
It was a rainy spring evening in Southern California. I was sitting on the floor of my parents’ living room, gazing up at the television screen as the opening credits began to roll. I was surrounded by my family, and we were all eagerly awaiting the first episode of the long-awaited Discovery Channel series, Planet Earth.
I still remember those first few moments vividly. The first episode was titled “Pole to Pole” and provided an overview of the entire series. From the massive herds of caribou to the chase of African wild dogs to the beloved birds of paradise of New Guinea. That first hour of Planet Earth was magic.
The series would go on for 9 more episodes, focusing on a variety of ecosystems, including caves, jungles, forests, plains, freshwater landscapes, mountains, deserts, and shallow seas.
As a nerdy kid who was already fascinated with animals and nature, the series was like dumping lighter fuel on a small fire; after watching the show, my love for and desire to work with the natural world exploded.
Over the years, I’ve written about the long-term effects of this series (you can find one of those posts in the Brighter Future blog here), but the massive influence Planet Earth has had on driving many individuals to work in the environmental, climate, and conservation fields cannot be overstated.
Planet Earth was just one of many films and series from Attenborough that have transformed the public understanding of nature. For nearly 75 years, he has been the voice of our planet, advocating for its protection and providing us with an inside look at the beauty of this wild and wonderful world.
The Origins of the Planet’s Presenter
Sir David Attenborough joined the BBC in 1952, working as a producer for the talks department of the broadcasting service. After a few years at the company, his first natural history program premiered in 1954, when he produced and broadcast a series titled Zoo Quest, where he accompanied an anthropologist around the world to collect specimens for the London Zoo.
For the next 40 years, Attenborough continued to work in and out of the BBC, working as a broadcaster, controller, and programme director. He produced different series on world history, anthropology, culture, and, of course, the natural world.
All of this work eventually culminated in Life on Earth, which was broadcast by the BBC in 1979. The series followed Attenborough around the world as he attempted to trace the history of life on our planet.
Life on Earth set the stage for the future of nature documentaries and became a hallmark of Attenborough’s work. The program established the now beloved model for his nature films, and allowed him to truly transition into the iconic nature presenter he has become known as today.
A couple of decades later, he would continue this work with The Blue Planet, which is considered the first comprehensive television series on marine life. The documentary series took 5 years to film and captured never-before-seen behaviors of marine animals, from the creatures of the deep to footage of blue whales, the biggest creatures to ever exist on our planet.
Attenborough continued to produce several other series and films, from Planet Earth to Frozen Planet to Blue Planet II. Through this work, he became synonymous with nature and climate action, and his words are now beloved by millions of individuals around the world. He’s given voice to millions of species of animals, highlighting their unique behaviors, and raising awareness on environmental issues worldwide.
In the past few months, with the release of potentially his final work at the age of 99 years old, Sir David is now delivering his final message to the world.
Sir David Attenborough’s Ocean
On Sunday evening, Sir David Attenborough’s Ocean was released on streaming platforms across the world.
The release of the film coincided with World Oceans Day, an international day of recognition for our planet’s ocean ecosystems. This year, the celebration focused on the youth of our planet and the ways youth leaders around the world are stepping up and making their voices heard for the oceans of the planet.
“Young leaders worldwide are stepping up and standing out as powerful voices for our blue planet. The message is clear: The future belongs to younger generations, and their leadership is essential to build a just and sustainable world,” wrote World Ocean Day in a press release.
The focus on the upcoming generation of advocates made it a very fitting day for Attenborough to deliver his message.
For many young advocates around the world, from millennials to generation alpha, Attenborough has been a mentor and voice of action. His work has inspired many of those who are now working on the frontlines of environmental issues, including ocean conservation and climate advocacy.
That’s why the delivery of his final message during this celebration was a passing of the torch. He acknowledges this throughout the film and has been vocal that it is now time for a new generation to take up the fight.
And he couldn’t have done it in a better way.
In the opening scenes of Ocean, the film showcases a landscape that includes an icecap covered in hundreds of penguins, slowly waddling across the icy surface. As the camera pans around the icecap, the presence of three massive ocean trawlers comes into view.
It’s a gut-punch of a shot. The few seconds of the visual highlight the contrasts between the beauty of our planet and the extraction that is currently happening in our oceans worldwide.
After the opening, the film goes on to showcase the beauty of our oceans, the latest understandings of the undersea landscapes, before narrowing in on its warning, focusing on the extractive industries harming our blue planet.
Accompanied by some of the most unbelievable (I honestly cannot figure out how they got access to do it) footage of a trawling net, the story starts to paint a very grim picture of our planet and the ways our industries are tearing it apart.
We are introduced to trawling vessels around the world, clamming rigs, and other extractive industries that are having profound effects on the ocean. In each segment, the film highlights the before and after visually, as well as the economic and societal toll these industries are having on the world.
You can feel the heaviness of the story. As I watched it, I found myself pacing, frustrated that all I could do was watch, and racking my brain for some way to get immediately involved.
But then the story took a turn for the unexpected. Instead of continuing to focus on the issues and pain that are hurting our planet’s oceans, it flips the switch and instead, focuses on hope.
For the final act of the film, Ocean focuses on the ways the blue world can be a lifeline for the future of our planet. The film shares examples of its resilience, highlighting examples of recovery and resilience we’ve seen in our planet’s oceans, from the Channel Islands in California to the reefs of Palau.
This is where the final message from Attenborough becomes very clear. One last time, he wants us to know, there is hope. There is a future. We can still save our planet.
As someone who has been watching his stories, reading his books, and listening to this man’s voice for nearly 20 years, this was the part of the story that hit me hard.
Sir David Attenborough has seen some of the most incredible locations, walked alongside the most beautiful creatures, and reported on every corner of our planet. He has watched as these places have been transformed from abundance and beauty to the harsh reality of our current landscape.
In many ways, he has every right to be angry about what has come to pass. Yet, after nearly 100 years of dedicated service to the planet, Sir David Attenborough is still providing us with hope.
This is why he is one of our planet’s starkest advocates. He has an uncanny ability to keep going, and this resilience has inspired entire generations of people with a sense of hope for the planet.
In recent months, he has been very outspoken about the fact that he is in his final days. In many ways, this film has been set up as his final message to the world.
With his presence gone, others will need to step up and fill the role. We already have some of those advocates who are playing their part, including one who is currently sailing to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid.
For me, though, to properly continue to respect Sir David Attenborough’s legacy, we must all stand up. We must find in us the fascination, love, and respect for the natural world that has carried him for this long. We must cultivate that relationship with nature, whether it’s in our backyards or on the high seas, and remember that we are a part of this planet too.
Because our blue planet needs us now more than ever. It needs leaders, communicators, stewards, scientists, and everyday citizens. Because if there is anything this man has taught me, it’s that we can always keep fighting, keep believing, and keep going.
In the final segments of the film, I began to tear up watching coral reefs come back to life, ecosystems be restored, and species return from the brink of extinction. In a world where we are constantly being derided by anger, frustration, pain, and suffering, it’s stories like this that provide us with a light at the end of the tunnel.
That’s why it’s incredibly fitting that the final message from one of the most important advocates in the history of our planet is one of hope.
If this is to be Attenborough’s final act, then we will carry his message: to keep going, to keep loving each other and our home, and to keep fighting for the future of this big and beautiful blue planet.
Thank you for everything, Sir David Attenborough.
Story of the Week
I wanted to highlight some good news that happening in the world today. This morning, the United Nations Ocean Conference started in Nice, France.
The conference, which is being co-hosted by France and Costa Rica, is being called upon as an effort to protect the planet’s oceans from extractive industries, including bottom trawling and deep-sea mining.
On Monday morning, some good news appeared to come out of the conference. The British government announced they were working to extend a ban on bottom trawling across 30,000 square kilometers (11,600 square miles) of English waters, which covers 41 marine-protected areas.
The efforts to highlight the effects of bottom-trawling in Attenborough’s Oceans documentary have been said to have played a major role in the English government’s decision to continue seeking the ban.
You can read the Reuters story on the proposed ban here.
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Thanks for being here, friends. See you in the next one.
With love,
Keegan
