This is the planet we still know so little. We call it Earth but less than 1/3 is land, over 2/3 is water and we use that water as a dumping site for our waste and as if it's an inexhaustible "horn of plenty" for humans. Our most important ecosystem is on the verge of collapse unless we act now. At this very moment the main problem with the oceans is that they're getting emptier and emptier. If we don't do anything then we face one of the biggest disasters in history of mankind.
"Africa Light" - as white local citizens call Namibia. The name suggests romance, the beauty of nature and promises a life without any problems in a country where the difference between rich and poor could hardly be greater. Namibia does not give that impression of it. If you look at its surface it seems like Africa in its most innocent and civilized form. It is a country that is so inviting to dream by its spectacular landscape, stunning scenery and fascinating wildlife. It has a very strong tourism structure and the government gets a lot of money with its magical attraction. But despite its grandiose splendor it is an endless gray zone as well. It oscillates between tradition and modernity, between the cattle in the country and the slums in the city. It shuttles from colonial times, land property reform to minimum wage for everyone. It fluctuates between socialism and cold calculated market economy.
Through a collage of spaces and times, the interventions and interferences of nature and human beings in the south of Brazil reveals themselves... or try to hide.
There's a gang war happening in the Luangwa Valley in Zambia, a battle among hippos for territory, dominance, mating rights, and survival. The reason? Dry season: a seven-month drought that forces over 30,000 hippos to the deepest part of the river to stay wet and cool. Follow these three-ton beasts as they fight lions, crocodiles, and other hippo gangs, struggling to stay alive until the next rainfall. Only then can they return to the lush paradise they once called home
We take our features, our noses, eyes, and ears for granted, but they are pretty weird things until you look at the nose of a tapir or desman, the eyes of a cuttlefish or chameleon, or the ears of a seal or elephant. There is an almost endless variety of designs, and some are downright odd!
In this retrospective tribute, acclaimed filmmaker Jean Walkinshaw hails the 100th anniversary of Mount Rainier National Park in Washington by talking to those who know it best: the scientists, naturalists, mountain climbers and artists whose lives have been touched by the peak's far-reaching shadow. The result is a harmonious blend of archival material and high-definition footage celebrating an icon of the Pacific Northwest.
Follow the Manhattan-based Beavan family as they abandon their high consumption 5th Avenue lifestyle and try to live a year while making no net environmental impact.
Sangduen Chailert, or Lek, as she is generally known, has already rescued over 200 elephants. She has dedicated her life to saving the Asian elephant and founded a special camp, The Elephant Nature Park to protect them. We follow this winner of Time Magazine’s “Asian Hero of the Year” Award in her work. Lek is on a mission to save the Asian elephant in her native Thailand. This film looks at the plight of the Asian elephant, as it goes from being a widely used domestic animal, to becoming a burden on modernizing communities. With experts predicting its extinction within four decades, Lek’s work is needed now more than ever and she has gathered a large group of supporters and volunteers in her quest for a better future for the Asian elephant. This moving film demonstrates Lek’s natural understanding of and rapport with these huge animals and will stir the viewers emotions as it highlights the often desperate state some elephants are kept in.
There is a mystery there and the answer lies somewhere between Bermuda, Puerto Rico and Miami. Hundreds of boats and planes have disappeared in the ocean with little or no trace at all. Most of these cases can be explained quite easily by human error or bad weather. But there are some that defy all explanation. Theories abound on these causes: Aliens, massive gas eruptions and freak waves. The documentary reveals that the boats and planes face a real danger in a triangle, but the true threat is often as strange as the wildest theory.
Cuba's enforced isolation has resulted in the unlikeliest of marine reserves: a huge, rambling archipelago known as Jardines de la Reina, or "Gardens of the Queen." Stretching around 140 miles along the southern coast of Cuba, it's one of the longest barrier reef systems in the world. Get an up-close look at Fidel Castro's diving playground, a forgotten ocean paradise unseen for half a century, and witness exotic species rarely seen elsewhere in the region. It's the lost jewel of the Caribbean, but how long can this pristine wilderness survive?
Welcome to Yellowstone, America's oldest and largest national park. Lose yourself in the majestic landscapes that serve as a giant natural laboratory, with over three million geysers, fifty species of mammals, and three hundred species of birds.
A look at the extraordinary abilities of squirrels, from the brainy fox squirrel to the acrobatic gray squirrel to the problem-solving ground squirrel.
The passage of time is spellbinding in this cinematic tour de force about the Wadden Sea. A film that inhales and exhales along with the tides as it explores the fragile relationship between man and nature.
This special feature showcases the intricacies of monitoring tigers in India and highlighting the positive impact on their global population.
Enter the harsh and unforgiving Kalahari and follow a lion pride attempt to save their threatened bloodline.
The old spirit of the Yukon returns as Dawson City prepares for its Discovery Day celebrations. Witness a round of nostalgic scenes: a main street parade, refurbished saloons, the can-can. Time recedes as the film explores the hazardous mountain passes and the golden creek of Eldorado.
"The Silent Alps" explores a forgotten massacre that is widely unknown in the modern era, the history of Kea culling in New Zealand
Inclusive Nature is a short film that addresses the theme of social inclusion through the beauty and simplicity of nature.
Mini-documentary about a man on a mission: to get rid of all the plastic in the oceans. To raise awareness for his mission he tried to kitesurf from The Netherlands to England, on a board made from disposed PET-bottles.
For 12,000 years wolves roamed Scotland. However, over three centuries ago, we exterminated them. This film reveals the rise and fall of the Scottish wolf and explores the question of whether they should be re-introduced. Wolves arrived as the last ice age ended, following the herds of deer and reindeer that crossed a now-lost land bridge from Europe. For thousands of years, wolves and humans shared the landscape as apex predators, with the wolf entering human art, myth and belief. However, farming put wolves and humans on a collision course, and, after centuries of persecution, wolves became extinct in Scotland. Since then, deer numbers have exploded, and many of Scotland’s woodlands have been stripped bare. Some argue for the wolf’s return. Could we, and should we, hear the howl of the wolf once more in the Highlands?