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Our Planet: A Call to Action

Because Every Day is Earth Day

If you haven't seen David Attenborough's new documentary series "Our Planet" I suggest you put it at the top of your to do list.

Not only is it classic Attenborough style with stunning footage and his soothing voice teaching you about nature (which I think we can all get on board with), it is also an incredibly dire call to action.

In this series Attenborough covers the usual topics of his documentaries: forests, oceans, deserts and coastlines. But the focus takes a strong turn towards how climate change it effecting different species and the domino effect that has on other species, including us humans. He brings to light the whole picture, how everything in nature is intertwined and depends on one another. How the extinction of species and biodiversity will also lead to the extinction of mankind.

As you continue to watch the series, more and more shocking statistics continue to come up. In case you don't get around to watching it (which is a mistake), here are a couple I couldn't shake:

1) In the last 50 years wildlife populations have decreased by over 60%. That means this happened all within our grandparents, parents, and maybe even your lifetime. If that doesn't make you say WTF I don't know what will.

2) It is predicted there will be no ice in the summer months in Antartica by 2040.. that's only 21 years away. If you don't know why this is a big deal then you really need to watch this documentary (or send me a message and I'm happy to explain the many consequences of rising sea levels and loss of life on all fronts). 

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Anyway, I won't get too much of the details of the documentary as that is what its there for. What I want to talk about it the call to action that David Attenborough expresses. At the end of each episode he provides a website to visit to see what you can do to help. Knowing the majority of people can't be bothered with this, I've provided this link here. Click it. Watch it. It's sad to say, but a lot of people don't really care about a cause unless it directly effects them. I wish this wasn't the case, but it is. Well, here you go. Here's how it effects you, and here's what you can do right now to combat it. And you should definitely pay attention.

If you couldn't be bothered to watch the video, here are the 4 major points Attenborough brings up about changes we need to make to save our planet:

1) Phasing Out Fossil Fuels: In order to have cleaner oceans and air (which we only need to breathe, it's fine), then we need to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. You may not have the means to do this, but you can reduce your power usage by switching off fixtures and chilling on the heat/air con. Pun intended. Read more about how to reduce your impact here.

2) More Efficient Food Production: Buy local where you can. Start or join in on your community garden (they're honestly everywhere). REDUCE your meat consumption. I'm not saying you have to be a vegan or vegetarian, but our current meat consumption as a global population is not sustainable, and a change has to be made. Need recipe ideas? Check these out.

3) Manage The Ocean: Now for this one to work it's important that everyone is on board globally. An agreement on no fishing zones will allow fish populations to increase which in turn will allow the oceans to regenerate themselves. Decrease your fish consumption, and if you do decide to eat seafood make sure you look for the Oceanwise sticker. This means the seafood was sustainably farmed/retrieved from the ocean.

4) Rewild The World: We need biodiversity for the world to work. We need wild animals and plants to be just that: wild. If you see a wild animal, leave it alone. Don't try to feed it and don't be an idiot and try to touch it. If you want to help wildlife you can donate to the World Wildlife Fund (they also have really cool articles and information on their website so check it out). But ultimately the best way you can help wildlife is to just leave them be.

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Okay, I'm almost done. The last thing I want to talk about is the walrus scene. If you haven't watched it yet then SPOILER ALERT.

In this scene, thousands of walruses are crammed on a tiny bit of land because all of the ice has melted and they have no where to go. Because of the crowds, several walruses make their way up the cliff to get some more space. However, when they get hungry they have no way to get back down. This scene shows several walruses fall to their death, and the outrage from people has been so unbelievably misdirected. I've seen so many people share the post and say shit like "why didn't the camera crew do anything. they should have helped them".

Well first of all, how are 4 people supposed to prevent a 1000kg walrus from falling? Catch them? I don't think so. The bigger issue here is that these people don't see the bigger picture. The walruses climbed the cliff because of the lack of space on land. Thousands of walruses were on land because the ice they usually live on has melted. The ice has melted because, you guessed it, rising temperatures. This was not the filmmakers fault. In fact, I think it's probably the most important scene in the documentary. It makes you feel something. Anger. Despair. Maybe a little heartbreak. Whatever it is I hope you use it. I hope you use that feeling along with the information here to spark a change in your life and the lives of those around you.

"Our Planet" touches on just that... our planet. No matter where you live, what you do, or how much money you have, this is your planet, this is your home, and you WILL be effected by climate change whether you like it or not. So make a change and hold the people in your life accountable for their actions as well. Our planet needs it.

Caylie Smith

Not Your Average

"Whatever is good for your soul, do that"

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