‘This starts and ends with us’
A new UK nature documentary warns that UK nature is in crisis. Saving Our Wild Isles is narrated by Sir David Attenborough who warns that ‘this starts and ends with us.’
The programme is exclusive to BBC iPlayer and has been commissioned by the country’s three leading conservation charities: the RSPB, the WWF and the National Trust. It’s been produced by Silverback films and was launched in April.
Saving Our Wild Isles highlights the people working hard to halt the alarming decline in nature as well as focusing on the wildlife and habitats at risk in the UK – one of the most nature depleted counties in the world.
‘In this film, we’ll meet inspiring people, young and old, who are working to restore the natural world,’ says Sir David Attenborough in the programme.
‘And we will discover that we all need to urgently repair our relationship with the natural world. We now have a few short years during which we can still make a choice. Where just enough remains of the natural world for it to recover. This starts and ends with us.’
The documentary is exclusive to the UK’s leading streaming platform, BBC iPlayer, and became available at the weekend.
The film is complementary to the BBC commissioned TV series ‘Wild Isles,’ which was also produced by Silverback Films.
Saving nature in the UK
The new film brings to life the scale and pace of change urgently needed to save nature in the UK.
It shows not only what is possible and already happening, but also highlights that in order to save our nature, its recovery needs to become mainstream across our society.
The charities explain that the UK is globally important for nature. They add that, at the moment, one quarter of our mammals and one third (38%) of our birds are at risk of extinction, while 97% of our wildflower meadows have been lost since the 1930s.
Producers say the film illustrates how people are working with nature and not against it.
They provide examples ranging from restoring seagrass meadows in North Wales, to nature-friendly farming in Suffolk and the Yorkshire Dales through to planting saplings to restore woodland in the Cairngorms National Park.
Saving Our Wild Isles illustrates how people are rising to Sir David’s challenge ‘to be the first generation that leaves these isles in better shape than we inherited them.’
There is already a dedicated and committed movement of people helping nature return from the brink.
The charities decided to commission the documentary as they feel the environment faces crisis and all of society needs to take action to work with the natural world.
Save Our Wild Isles campaign
‘Whilst it’s tempting to think of those on the frontline as the only ones who can make a difference,’ says Sir David Attenborough.
‘The truth is, every one of us, no matter where we live, can and must play a part in restoring nature to our isles. Never has it been more important to do this for ourselves and for our wildlife,’
‘We at Silverback Films were delighted to have been commissioned by the WWF, the RSPB and the National Trust to produce this uplifting film that celebrates the extraordinary work being done by people working hard to restore nature to our Wild Isles,’ says Alastair Fothergill, Silverback Films
Last month the RSPB, WWF and the National Trust launched the Save Our Wild Isles campaign, urging everyone in society to come together to halt the destruction of UK nature and take urgent action to save it.
The campaign highlights not only how nature underpins everything that makes our lives possible, but also how profoundly threatened it is.
The charities say there is just enough of the UK’s natural world still left to save. They add that if everyone urgently work together to aid its recovery, nature can begin to thrive again within the next few decades.