As usual, the BBC has knocked another outstanding wildlife documentary mini-series out of the park with 'AFRICA' with David Attenborough. Up front it looks like the typical 'Africa is a completely untamed continent' project, but that would be a superficial assessement.
AFRICA's scope is the first documentary I've ever seen that attempts to give viewers a serious look at how truly vast the continent is , the massive size of the population and the many, many countries that stake claim over it's lands. There is a segment in which all the major players in the western and eastern world (save Russia) are shown to easily fit within the confines of the African Continent. Thus dispelling all false images that it is only 'slightly larger' than it's western betters!
Beyond all the fantastic images and sequences of animals, the forests and deserts doing their thing there are also correlations to how both the sea and worldwide weather are influenced by the natural processes in Africa. There was a far greater effort to show how so many vast and miniscule portions of what occurs in nature benefits us all in every corner of the world. Amazing sights like powerful dust storms in the Sahara 'fertilizing' the Rainforests of Brazil and the forests of the Congo Basin 'breathing' thus creating rain events that reach all the way to Australia just to name a few!
Most intriguing and important is how they show it is Africans from many nations recognizing their responsibilities to preserve their wild resources not just for themselves, but for all of us and taking the steps to do so. African scientists, veterinarians, botanists, entomologists, park rangers and volunteers in support of numerous conservation efforts all doing their part was a heartening sight indeed.
Of course, there are still the forces of poaching / corporate consumption ever-present. While some of their effects on wildlife, the land and sea are shown there is also evidence that all is not yet lost. If you are writing your stories with African settings or just want to get a look at some amazing sights from the birthplace of humanity, take a look at AFRICA. Make sure you've got the biggest screen you can manage, turn the sound up and get comfortable so you can enjoy the ride.
Here's a link to watch the final episode:
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