New David Attenborough documentary, Extinction: The Facts, coming soon to BBC One

Presented by Sir David Attenborough, Extinction: The Facts, a one-hour documentary for BBC One, will air on Sunday 13 September, at 8pm.

Extinction: The Facts – a follow on from last year’s Climate Change: The Facts – explores what biodiversity loss and extinction mean for the planet and us as a species.

“Over the course of my life I’ve encountered some of the world’s most remarkable species of animals. Only now do I realise just how lucky I’ve been. Many of these wonders seem set to disappear forever. We are facing a crisis and one that has consequences for us all. It threatens our ability to feed ourselves, to control our climate, it even puts us at greater risk of pandemic diseases such as COVID-19.” – Sir David Attenborough

Last year a UN report revealed that around one million animal and plant species are facing extinction. Troublingly, extinction is happening up to 100 times faster than the natural evolutionary rate.

This programme reveals how the crisis has consequences for us all, threatening food and water security, reducing our ability to control our climate and even putting us at greater risk of pandemic diseases.

It explores what is happening to the natural world – how human activity drives extinction and why we haven’t acted sooner to stem these losses. With the world at a critical turning point, the documentary asks what governments, industries and we as individuals can now do to change our course.

“It’s never been more important for us to understand the effects of biodiversity loss, of how it is that we ourselves are responsible for it. Only if we do that, will we have any hope of averting disaster.” – Sir David Attenboroug

Extinction: The Facts is part of the BBC’s ongoing commitment to programmes which explore the environment and the challenges facing the natural world, under the Our Planet Matters banner.