HOTSPOTS US television premiere on KQED

KQED

San Francisco - In the late 1980s, scientists coined a word, " hotspots " that referred to those areas on the planet which were populated by the largest number of unique plant, animal and insect species at risk of going extinct, a definition that pivots upon the number of flowering plants (at least 1500 different species) and the amount of habitat already lost (at least 70%). Since the 1980’s, the number of areas characterized as "hotspots" has increased to 35, encompassing approximately 2.3 percent of the Earth's terrestrial surface area. The book, Hotspots, and its updated version, Hotspots Revisited, were authored by Dr. Russell Mittermeier and several colleagues. Their work, and that of many hundreds of scientific collaborators throughout the world, has demonstrated that human beings have what it takes to resolve ecological conflict and restore balance to those unique habitats most at risk, thus saving literally hundreds of millions, if not billions of individual lives.

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Hotspots highlighted in new film

IUCN

Geneva - Hotspots, a film by Michael Tobias, was shown for the first time in Europe at IUCN on Friday, September 5.

Based on the book “Hotspots Revisited” by Russell Mittermeier, the feature film documentary examines some of the world’s 35 hotspots, regions that have been identified by scientist as being particularly rich in species.

The film follows Russell Mittermeier, who is the Chair of IUCN’s Primate Specialist Group and President of Conservation International, to locations including Madagascar, Brazil, Peru, and New Zealand.

The film reveals numerous primates, birds, rodents, bats, insects, reptiles, amphibians and unique plants, some of which have never been filmed before. Several new species are recorded on film for the first time.

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New eco-documentary racks focus on 6th mass extinction and the race to reverse it

DANCING STAR FOUNDATION

LOS ANGELES - Just as humanity comes to grips with global warming, the world's leading biologists now warn us that a larger evolutionary event looms on the horizon, an unprecedented mass extinction already underway that threatens to exterminate up to 60 percent of all life forms on Earth before the end of this century. 
 
HOTSPOTS, a sobering but optimistic made-for-television two-hour feature film documentary by husband-and-wife producing team Michael Tobias and Jane Gray Morrison, takes cameras deep inside critical conservation areas on the front lines of efforts to hold ground for besieged biodiversity and find common ground for economic and ecological interests.

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Leading environmentalist presents special screening of Hotspots at Auckland Museum

Auckland Museum

Disappearing species and loss of habitat. Is it too late for our planet? Is it too late for New Zealand?

Not according to Dr Michael Tobias, leading environmentalist and writer-director of acclaimed documentary Hotspots – who will introduce a special screening of his film to audiences at Auckland Museum in September.

The film reveals how inspired conservation efforts are succeeding throughout the world. Hotspots refers to those areas of our planet populated by the largest number of unique plant, animal and insect species at risk of extinction.

Shot in multiple locations throughout New Zealand, United States, Peru, Brazil, Madagascar and Chile’s Easter Island, this epic conveys good reasons to be hopeful, while reminding us of the precious array of life on Earth, the very creation at stake in this generation.

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