「人類未來50年做的事,將決定地球的命運」--紀錄片製作人David Attenborough

「人類正在經歷第6次大滅絕」David Attenborough一語點破地球瀕臨崩潰的生態現況。他認為面對這場浩劫,人們除了彼此責怪,更重要的是著眼於實際、立即的改變。

Before you read

Sir David Frederick Attenborough
大衛.艾登堡爵士
1926年5月8日 – present

WHO

英國生物學家、生態作家、自然生態電視節目主持人、製作人,投身環境保護推廣事業逾60年。英國人將他視為國寶級的人物,1985年受英國女王策封為爵士(Sir David),2002年被全英國票選為百大人物之一。

WHAT

60多年來,David Attenborough經手製作的生態紀錄片不計其數,如1980年代膾炙人口的《生命之源Life on Earth》三部曲、影響英國女王及國會推行減塑政策的BBC《藍色星球2》,到2019年Netflix上映的《我們的星球》。

HIGHLIGHT

全世界有超過15種生物是以Attenborough為命名基礎,像是Blakea attenboroughi (厄瓜多花樹)。最近,聯合國將國際垃圾管制法《巴塞爾公約修正條例》的通過,歸功於David Attenborough及其他紀錄片製作人,認為他們大力推動了民眾對垃圾議題的普及認知。

“Their outrage is certainly justified.”

2019年初開始,青少年反氣候變遷的抗議延燒,David Attenborough表示全力支援,他認為許多和他一樣的成年人,完全無法理解人類與自然共存的重要。他說:「這些孩子的怒火合乎情理,無須質疑。」


演講節錄

節錄自2019年4月5日,Sir David Attenborough在Netflix節目《我們的星球Our Planet》的首映會上,受邀發表的精彩演講。演講中David Attenborough徐緩的語速和恰當的停頓,讓每句話語扣人心弦、迴盪不已。

為什麼要拍大自然?

Directly behind me, behind this enormous screen is a statue of Charles Darwin, whose astonishing understanding of the natural world led to what has been called the greatest idea in human history, the theory of evolution by natural selection.

在我身後,在這巨大的螢幕之後,矗立著一尊達爾文的雕像。達爾文對大自然的深度理解,成為人類歷史上最偉大的構想,那就是物競天擇的演化論。

Darwin revealed that all species have evolved over time to best exploit the conditions in which they live. He further realized that these conditions are not simply those of geography and climate, but also their relationship to other lives that live alongside. From the delicate codependences of bees and orchids to the dramatic connection between cheetah and gazelle, all life on Earth is both product and contributor to its place in space and time.

達爾文揭露了,所有物種都會隨著時間,演化到最能適應環境的狀態。達爾文更了解到所謂的環境,並不僅限於地理或氣候條件,也包含物種與物種之間的關聯。從蜜蜂和蘭花脆弱的共生關係,到獵豹及瞪羚微妙的連結,地球上所有的生命既是環境產物,同時也是自然的貢獻者。

This complex web of life of which we are part has been millennia in the making. Whilst Darwin's insights explain how this web came about, over 200 years later, we are still only beginning to understand its interconnections, and which of these connections are the most vital.

如此複雜的生命之網已經延續了千年的光陰,當達爾文的洞見解釋了生命之網的形成,200年之後的我們仍僅是初步了解生態的相互牽連,以及其中哪些關聯至關緊要。

Yet, we do know, for certain, is that these connections can break, from the dinosaurs, to my right, to other spectacular fossils, on my left. We have all tonight been within touching distance of astonishing fragments of ecosystems long gone.

然而,我們確實知道的是,這些連結可能遭破壞,從我左手邊的恐龍化石,到我右手邊其他同樣壯觀的化石,這就是破壞的證明。今晚,我們將會近距離見證,那些消逝生態中,驚人的一小部分。

*whilst為英式拼法的while。

人類正處在第6次大滅絕中

As far as we know, there have been five major extinction events on our planet. Events caused by changes so severe that many species simply can't adapt, and as such die out. Right now, we are in the midst of the Earth's sixth mass extinction. One every bit as profound and far-reaching as that which wiped out the dinosaurs.

就人類已知,地球已經歷了5次大滅絕,由環境劇變引起的災難非常慘重,導致許多物種無法適應而滅亡。就在此刻,我們正處於第6次的大滅絕當中,而這次的規模正如同毀滅恐龍那次,慘烈且影響深遠。

It's almost impossible to the grasp, as we go about our lives that the rest of life on Earth is experiencing destruction on the scale of that brought by a colossal asteroid collision. But consider these facts. Ninety-six percent of the mass of mammals on our planet, today, are us and the livestock that we've domesticated. Only four percent is everything else from elephants to badgers, tigers to bats. Seventy percent of all birds are now domesticated poultry, mostly chickens.

正當我們如常過日子,實在很難想像,地球上其他的生命正在經歷一場浩劫,其規模堪比小行星撞擊的大規模毀滅。想想下面這些事情:目前地球上96%的哺乳類,是人類和飼養的牲畜,僅剩下4%的哺乳類是其他野生物種,從大象、獾、老虎到蝙蝠。70%的鳥類都是家禽,大部分還都是雞。

Nature once determined how we survive. Now, we determine how nature survives. One of the things Darwin's work has taught us is that we break nature's connections at our peril, yet break them, we do, at ever greater speed. The impacts of our growing population and our consumption, now, directly threaten our own future.

大自然一度主宰人類的生存,現在我們掌控了自然的走向。達爾文的演化論教會了我們一件事,即破壞大自然生態的連結就等於自取滅亡,但我們用極快的速度,摧毀了自然生態的連結。人口的快速增長及消費欲望的擴張,甚至直接威脅到了人類自身的未來。

我們曾經復甦藍鯨,當然也能挽救大自然

That magnificent creature up there whose skeletons hangs out there above us, the blue whale, can give us inspiration. Just thirty years ago, most whale species, including blue whale, were heading towards extinction. A public outcry led to a global agreement to protect whales, and now most populations are recovering.

高懸在我們上頭的美麗生物,藍鯨,也許可以給我們啟發。僅在30年前,包含藍鯨在內,大多數鯨魚曾一度瀕臨絕種。當時公眾的抗議影響了國際條約,讓很多國家同意保護鯨魚。現在,鯨魚的數量正在恢復。

We've subsequently learned how important whales are to the entire ocean system, including the fish that we eat, so saving these majestic creatures actually benefits us as well. What we did to save the whales, we must, now, do for all nature. And that is a communication's challenge as much as it is a scientific one.

隨後,大家就認知到鯨魚對整個海洋系統有多重要,包含平常吃的魚,因此拯救這些巨大的生物也確實幫助到我們自己。我們當初為鯨魚做的,我們現在就要為整個大自然行動。而這場行動除了面臨科學上的困境,更是一場推廣傳播上的挑戰。

The eight part our planet series aims to reach a billion people around the world. It celebrates the species and habitats that still remain, and reveals what must be protected to ensure both people and nature thrive. I've always believed that few people will protect the natural world, if they don't first love and understand it.

《我們的星球》所製作的8集節目,就是為了將這一切傳達到全世界十億觀眾,這部作品歌頌著碩果僅存的野生物種及自然環境,並告訴大眾,什麼才是我們必須付諸保護的,並確保人類及大自然能延續繁榮盛景。同時我確信,我們唯有在愛戴且理解大自然的情況下,才會去好好保護自然世界。

是紀錄片角度唯美,還是地球真的這麼美?

Many sequences in the Our Planet series reveal nature at its most fascinating and delightful; others prove that good things do indeed come to those who wait, often for a very long time, as many talented cameramen and women who've recorded all kinds of wonders for us know only too well. But what really makes our planet stand out? Is the clear driving story that runs through the entire species in star series? And the wider communications project?

《我們的星球》中,一連串鏡頭集結了大自然最夢幻及美好的一面;其他的畫面也證明了,漫長的等待終會等出好的成果,因為許多傑出的攝影師拍下這些壯麗的畫面,讓我們得以徹底認識大自然。但什麼才是讓《我們的星球》如此出眾的關鍵呢?是訴說整個地球物種、強而有力的故事嗎?還是更好的節目播放企劃呢?

The natural world is not just nice to have. It fundamentally matters to each and every one of us. This has been a true labor of love for hundreds of filmmakers, cinematographers, conservationists, editors, musicians, productions, and teams, all of whom have brought their best work to this most important story that there is a story that could not be more universal or more timely. 

大自然並非可有可無,它從根本上與所有人牽連。這部紀錄片集結了數百位工作人員的付出,包含製作人、攝影師、環保人士、後製人員、配音師、製作組和不同的團隊。這群人用最好的一面,在這危及存亡的緊要關頭,呈現出這部和全人類息息相關的重要作品。


文/ 英語島編輯室

收錄於英語島 2019年7月號
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