Speaking in Davos, Switzerland, the Blue Planet and Dynasties narrator said: "Now we can go everywhere, we can go into the bottom of the sea, we can go into space, we can use drones, we can use helicopters, we can use macroworlds, we can speed things up, we can slow things down, we can film in the darkness - and so the natural world has never been exposed to this degree before."<doc-sep>Sir David Attenborough has warned that humankind has the power to exterminate whole ecosystems “without even noticing”, and urged world leaders to treat the natural world with respect, during an interview with Prince William in Davos. Prince William also took world leaders to task at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, asking Attenborough why those in key positions have “taken so long” to address climate change. Attenborough said the connection between the natural world and urban societies had been “remote and widening” since the industrial revolution, meaning humans do not realise the effect their actions have on the global ecosystem. The 92-year-old broadcaster added that it was “difficult to overstate” the urgency of the environmental crisis. Quick Guide What is Davos 2020? Show Davos is a Swiss ski resort now more famous for hosting the annual four-day conference for the World Economic Forum. For participants it is a festival of networking. Getting an invitation is a sign you have made it – and the elaborate system of badges reveals your place in the Davos hierarchy. The meeting is sponsored by a huge number of international banks and corporations. For critics, “Davos man” is shorthand for the globe-trotting elite, disconnected from their home countries after spending too much time in the club-class lounge. Others just wonder if it is all a big waste of time. The 2020 meeting is being advertised as focusing on seven themes: Fairer economies, better business, healthy futures, future of work, tech for good, beyond geopolitics and how to save the planet. Young climate activists and school strikers from around the world will be present at the event to put pressure on world leaders over that last theme. Was this helpful? Thank you for your feedback. “We’re now so numerous, so powerful, so all-pervasive, the mechanisms we have for destruction are so wholesale and so frightening, that we can actually exterminate whole ecosystems without even noticing it. We have to now be really aware of the dangers of what we’re doing, and we already know that of course the plastic problem in the seas is wreaking appalling damage upon marine life, the extent of which we don’t yet fully know.” He stressed that the natural world “is not just a matter of beauty, interest and wonder” but a coherent ecosystem on which we depend for “every breath we take, every mouthful of food we take.” A healthy planet, Attenborough added, is an essential part of human life. “If we don’t recognise the kind of connections I’ve been describing, then the whole planet comes in hazard, and we are destroying the natural world and with it ourselves.” 02:22 'The Garden of Eden is no more', David Attenborough warns Davos summit – video William pressed Attenborough for a key message for the politicians and business leaders gathered in Davos this week. “Care for the natural world. Not only care for the natural world but treat it with a degree of respect and reverence,” Attenborough said, adding that there was a worrying tendency to waste resources. “The thing that I really care for in our ordinary daily lives is not to waste the riches of the natural world on which we depend. And it’s not just energy ,which of course is very important, but it’s also dealing with the natural world with a degree of respect. Not to throw away food, not to throw away power – just care for the natural world of which you’re an essential part.” The Duke of Cambridge started and ended the session by congratulating Attenborough for winning the Crystal award, which recognises individuals who have helped make the world a better place, at the World Economic Forum on Monday night. William added it was a “personal treat” to be asking Attenborough questions, and quipped that it was a good change of pace from being the subject of interviews himself. Asking why global leaders have taken so long to react to climate change, William said: ““Why do you think world leaders and those in key positions of leadership; why do think they’ve taken so long … there have been quite a few faltering steps to act on environmental challenges?” Prince William greets Sir David Attenborough on stage at Davos. Photograph: Markus Schreiber/AP Comparisons were also drawn between the broadcaster’s burgeoning BBC career in the 1950s, compared with his latest project that sees him team up with Netflix and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) for an upcoming series called “Our Planet” to be released on the online TV streaming site. Attenborough said his early work in the mid-1950s involved himself, one camera and one cameraman, and it was relatively “easy” to impress Britons simply by televising an armadillo. Now the systems are “unbelievable”, taking viewers to the sky and depths of the ocean in ways that 50 years ago, “people couldn’t imagine”. Prince William noted Attenborough’s late shift to environmental activism, noting that for many years the presenter “held back from speaking publicly about environmental issues”. Attenborough said that at the start of his career, it was nearly inconceivable that the environment would be in such a state of crisis and even pockets of animal extinction seemed like the exception rather than the norm. Sign up to the daily Business Today email “To be truthful I don’t think there was anyone in the mid-50s who thought there was a danger that we would annihilate parts of the natural world. There were animals that were in danger, that’s true and there were animals that we could see if we didn’t do something they were going to become extinct. “And the notion that human beings might exterminate a whole species … you just hadn’t thought about it,” he said. “Now of course we’re only too well aware that the whole of the natural world is at our disposal, as it were. We can do things accidentally that exterminate a whole area of the natural world and species that live within it.”<doc-sep>Prince William is taking his concern for the environment and mental health to a global stage Prince William Plays Journalist at World Economic Forum: 'It’s Nice to Turn the Tables for Once' Prince William is taking his concern for the environment and mental health to a global stage — and seeing what it’s like to be on the other side of an interview. The 36-year-old royal is in Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum, where he took part in a conversation with Sir David Attenborough on Tuesday. William interviewed the 92-year-old English broadcaster and natural historian about his work highlighting the importance of the natural world and the urgent challenges that will face the next generation of environmental leaders. Get push notifications with news, features and more. At the start of the interview, William said: “It’s a personal treat for me to be sitting asking you the questions. It’s nice to turn the tables for once.” Attenborough, who also narrates the Netflix nature documentary Our Planet, spoke about the importance of protecting the environment, speaking directly to those leaders gathered. Forum, Davos, Switzerland - 22 Jan 2019 Credit: Markus Schreiber/AP/REX/Shutterstock Forum, Davos, Switzerland - 22 Jan 2019 Credit: Markus Schreiber/AP/REX/Shutterstock “We can wreck the natural world with ease. We can wreck the natural world without even noticing. But, in doing so, we wreck ourselves,” he said. “I ask this room to care for the natural world.” Attenborough addd, “There is more power in this room than any gathering anywhere. The people here need to do something about the natural world.” There were also a few light-hearted moments between the duo. When discussing the nature of filming and working with gases and the elements, the royal dad of three joked: “They’re a bit like children, aren’t they, David? Unpredictable.” And when they discussed how nature documentaries are filmed and how difficult it can be to get steady shots, Attenborough referenced the royal’s experience as a helicopter pilot: “You’re a pilot. Is it tricky work?” “It can be, David…” William said with a laugh. Forum, Davos, Switzerland - 22 Jan 2019 Credit: Markus Schreiber/AP/REX/Shutterstock Attenborough will also be honored at this year’s Forum as one of the winners of the annual Crystal Award. Attenborough has a long history of collaborating with the royal family. Aside from being knighted in 1985, he appeared with Queen Elizabeth in the documentary The Queen’s Green Planet, which highlighted projects throughout the world linked to the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy Project. William and Attenborough have also crossed paths on several occasions. Most recently, they spoke at the Sept. 2017 premiere of Blue Planet II at the British Film Institute, and the prince presented Attenborough an award for his services to wildlife during the 2016 Tusk Conservation Awards. On Wednesday, Prince William will join a panel discussion on mental health, highlighting his belief that the world’s major employers have a vital role to play in promoting healthy communities and workplaces. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will be among the other participants.<doc-sep>
Sir David Attenborough warned of the "echoes and implications" in the natural world of everything humans do in the urban world as he took questions from old friend Prince William. In front of a packed audience at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Duke of Cambridge spoke to the 92-year-old broadcaster and naturalist for half an hour, talking about their shared passions for conservation, tackling climate change and Sir David's long broadcasting career. After William asked what advice Sir David would give to people of his age, the broadcaster said: "We have to recognise that every breath of air we take, every mouthful of food that we take comes from the natural world, and that if we damage the natural world we damage ourselves. "We are one coherent eco-system, it's not just a question of beauty or interest or wonder, it's the essential ingredient, the essential part of human life is a healthy planet. "We are in the danger of wrecking that, if we don't recognise the sort of connections that I've been describing then the whole of the planet becomes in hazard and we are destroying the natural world and with it ourselves." Image: The pair spoke for half an hour about the issues facing the natural world William described it as a personal treat to interview the leading environmentalist, who he has described as a "national treasure". Reading from a list of prepared questions, William said: "Normally i have to endure people asking me questions, so it's nice to be turning the tables for once." In a veiled dig at political leaders, he asked: "Why do you think the world leaders and those in key positions of leadership have taken so long and there have been quite a few faltering steps to act on environmental challenges?" Sir David replied: "Because the connection between the natural world and the urban world, the society of human society has always, since the industrial revolution, has been remote and widening and we didn't realise the effects of what we were doing out there, but now we are seeing that almost everything we do has its echoes and has its implications across the natural world. "We have now to really be careful what we do because we can exterminate things without even knowing". Image: The prince dubbed Sir David a 'national treasure' Talking specifically about the impact of plastic waste, he added: "We have now to be really aware of the dangers of what we are doing. We already know that that of course the plastic problem in the seas is wreaking appalling damage upon marine life, the extent of which we don't yet fully know." Sir David said he was optimistic to see a gathering like this at the WEF, widely recognised as a global talking shop for political and economic leaders, as well as philanthropic celebrities. Asked by William about the conflict between environmentalism, capitalism and economic success, Sir David said: "Still it is seen by some people that in fact humanity and industrialised humanity in particular is in opposition to the natural world. "It is not. We are all one world and that is the important thing that we need to recognise, and which organisations and events like this give you the optimism of feeling that fact, that fundamental beautiful fact is now being recognised. "That is why it is so exciting to be at this great important occasion where people attending it have more power perhaps than any other gathering in the world, and the feeling that those responsible for this gathering recognise this fundamental truth." He added that those in the room must "do something to make sure that the pact between the natural world and humanity is given its proper place and honour." Work around conservation and the environment has become a key focus for Prince William's charitable work. Sir David was awarded the Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum for his leadership on environmental campaigning and used his acceptance speech to call for a global plan to tackle the issues. :: Sky's Ocean Rescue campaign encourages people to reduce their single-use plastics. You can find out more about the campaign and how to get involved at www.skyoceanrescue.com