22 Jan You can help save planet Earth

We are all one world

Sir David Attenborough, Davos 2019

If there is one galvanizing force in the discussion on Life on Earth and climate change, it has to be David Attenborough. He is the most recognizable face of modern natural history, and an ardent protagonist for protecting the delicate balance between the various ecosystems that sustain and protect us.

David Attenborough on Climate Change

And he is filled with hope that with the right focus and understanding of our impact and our footprint upon this earth, we can redress our impact on planet Earth.

It’s not too late

And he has a rallying cry to our Generation Z: it is not too late. This is still an opportunity, albeit an urgent one. If you are seeking a mission, rather than a career, one big project you may want to be involved in is saving planet Earth.

In a time when conversations around the Future of Work centre around the loss of jobs to robots and AI, we have some mega-trends that are going to require focus, manpower, creative thinking and versatility. There is some serious work to do, and a shrinking window of opportunity.

“It’s difficult to overstate it. We are now so numerous, so powerful, so all-pervasive, the mechanisms that we have for destruction are so wholesale and so frightening, that we can actually exterminate whole ecosystems without even noticing it.”

David Attenborough in an interview with HRH The Duke of Cambridge at the World Economic Forum Davos 2019

The impact of climate change over life on Earth over the next 30 years cannot be disputed. It is one of three inter-linked mega trends of our time, said Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General in his speech at WEF, Davos 2019. In his book, The World is Flat, Frank Bruni described how climate change would impact the movement of populations as they tried to escape the effects. This week’s report on the melting icecaps in Iceland are no exception.

It is at once, the most urgent and desperate situation for us to focus on, and an amazing opportunity for a new generation to take control and repair.

Influencers: Attenborough & Life on Earth

Yes. Before Instagram and Snapchat, we had them too! We did not have this fancy name for them then. But we knew them. There were three people who profoundly influenced my curiosity and love of nature, appreciation for life’s simple beauties like a petal or a dawn sky. They were my grandmother, my father, and David Attenborough.

As a teen, I recall gathering with my family around our three channel TV set to watch David Attenborough’s documentary ‘Life on Earth‘ on BBC. The bold scale of the photography, the intimate portraits of the most humble creatures on earth, and the detailed descriptions opened the world to my generation. His gentle and inquisitive voice, constantly communicating wonder, amazement and curiosity, can still be heard in living rooms, classrooms and at desks around the world through his continuing documentary series such as Blue Planet, Living Planet and Life of Birds. And of course, Planet Earth.

His influence started then, and continues to inform my decisions on travel, conservation, and care of our planet. And the passion with which our children have taken up that same cause.

Some scientists suggest that up to a quarter of animal species could be extinct by 2050. But it’s not too late – you can be involved in saving planet Earth. If you are a child, this is your future. If you’re a parent, it’s your legacy. The time to act is now.

Sir David Attenborough, 2007

What now GenZ and influencers?

What difference can you make?

• Is there one small and immediate lifestyle choice within your area of influence, that you can make to impact climate change?
• In your current area of study, or career of choice, what one action can you take to tilt the impact of climate change towards preservation of our planet Earth?
• What kinds of careers are related to this initiative? Start with a list of 10, and then expand it. This needs more than scientists. We need broadcasters, researchers, lobbyist and educators to spread the optimism and create a positive momentum.
• Don’t like carbon tax, carbon credits? What alternatives can you imagine and suggest? The best ideas can come from anywhere. Add your voice to the discussion.
• If you could start a conversation with two people around this topic, who would they be? And what is the most urgent issue you would discuss? What solutions would you debate?

And then have the courage to take one small step. Reach out to one person and start this conversation.

Credit & Thanks; Definitions & Resources:

• Inspiration: Interview between HRH The Duke of Cambridge and Sir David Attenborough at the World Economic Forum summit in Davos 2019.
• For the full article and transcript of the interview visit Ross Chainey’s article ‘Top quotes from Prince William’s interview with Sir David Attenborough at Davos‘
• GenZ, Gen Z, Generation Z – if you were born in 1995 or after. You are usually a digital native, having no memory of a world without the internet!
• A version of this article is also published on LinkedIn
• David Attenborough documentaries wikipedia
• Frank Bruni – The World is Flat
• Article on melting polar icecaps
• Youtube and photo credits: World Economic Forum