Humans are destroying biodiversity, Sir David Attenborough warns in new film

Sir David Attenborough voices animated short feature about why we need biodiversity.

Sir David Attenborough has said that nature has a “great spiritual and cultural value” for human beings yet “many human actions are destroying biodiversity.”

In an animated short feature from the Royal Society, premiering on Monday 11 October on YouTube, Sir David explains the importance of biodiversity and what we must do now to protect it.

The five-minute animation shows rich scenes of biodiversity set against the harmful outcomes from human activities on the planet. These images include coral reefs bleached by increasing temperatures, clear waters devastated by plastic pollution and drought, and animals at risk of extinction due to human consumption.

Calling for action in the video, Sir David emphasises the necessity in integrating sustainability and economic development in an effort to tackle the biodiversity crisis.

“We must provide pathways for global development that work with, rather than against nature, and we need to give the communities affected a seat at the table,” he said.

“The benefits provided by nature are indispensable for making human life both possible and worth living,” he adds. “We need all the riches of our living planet to help us live healthy, happy lives long into the future.”

This message comes at a pivotal time as world leaders gather for the UN Biodiversity and Climate Change Conferences (COP 15 and COP 26) this month, and also as we mark the beginning of the UN Decade of the Ocean.

12 October 2021

INDEPENDENT