Show Notes
There are few places on our planet that have not in some way been shaped by humans. We’re looking at how, for better or worse, we’ve made a mark on our world, and whether it’s possible to escape the influence of us.
To begin, we travel to Aldabra - an idyllic coral atoll in the Indian ocean. It’s one of the most remote places in the world, home to giant tortoises and very little human intrusion. Yet even in this largely uninhabited spot, traces of humanity can be found.
Next we’ll be exploring an island far away from anywhere else, right in the middle of the Atlantic. Ascension Island is an arid landscape. But it’s also home to a lush man-made tropical forest. What lessons can we learn from one of humanity’s largest ever landscaping projects?
To finish, we’ll hear from journalist Judith D. Schwartz. She explains how human influence - even that thousands of years in the making - has and can be reversed.
Thank you for listening to another series of the BBC Earth podcast.
As ever, we love hearing from you on social media, so do share with us your favourite episode so far or a story that amazed, surprised or moved you…
To find out more about David Attenborough’s stunning natural world series, A Perfect Planet, visit the BBC Earth website: bbcearth.com
Website: www.bbcearth.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/bbcearth/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/bbcearth/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbcearth
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More from BBC Earth Podcast
The show takes a spooky turn as we go on a ghost hunt through the natural world. Sebastian shares his adventures finding fossils – the traces of animals that once lived, and Rutendo talks about her experiences in The Cradle of Humankind, the South African UNESCO World Heritage site containing early human fossils.
The difference between order and chaos can depend on your perspective. The systems and processes that drive the natural world might seem random in close-up, whether it’s an ant wandering around near its nest, or a wildebeest charging through the water. But if you zoom out, you can see how these small activities combine to form part of a bigger picture.
Sebastian is not afraid to admit that he lacks natural rhythm. But Rutendo thinks he’s too hard on himself – perhaps the world is just out of sync with him. Besides, every living thing is built upon natural rhythms, from our response to night and day, to the beating of our hearts.
In an age of individualism, sometimes we are more connected than we think. And the same is true for everything on the planet. Rutendo and Sebastian explore the question of how and why we define an individual, a colony, or a group, across the animal kingdom.
It’s a scary world out there, as we explore how everything on the planet – from humankind to glaciers – must be able to respond to threat in order to survive. Sebastian surprises Rutendo with a story of the time he lived in Japan and took up fencing, occasionally finding himself at the wrong end of a sword.