Premieres Wednesdays, July 5 - Aug. 9, 2023 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV / PBS App
A new six-part documentary series, hosted by biologist and Princeton University professor Shane Campbell-Staton, embarks on a journey to understand all the ways humans have transformed the planet. Part science series and part travel show, HUMAN FOOTPRINT takes viewers from farms to restaurants, from a high-tech lab to a sweltering street market, from pristine rain forests to the sewers of New York City. Stories of science, history, and culture reveal the complicated, conflicted, and remarkable species that is Homo sapiens.
The series is not a “doom and gloom” tale of human villainy. Instead, it is an honest reckoning with our vast footprint and our species’ singular history of transforming the planet. As our power to reshape the planet grows, will our understanding of the world we inhabit ever catch up?
“Hosting HUMAN FOOTPRINT has been one of the greatest adventures of my life. I study how animals adapt to the changes we are making to the planet, but this journey really helped me to better understand the depth and breadth of our impact,” Shane said. “We are so intricately connected to the world around us in so many ways. I hope this series helps others to see and think about those connections in new ways.”
EPISODE GUIDE:
Episode 1: “Strangers In Paradise” premieres Wednesday, July 5, 2023 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - Invasive species are reshaping the world’s ecosystems, but who’s to blame? Shane wrestles a python, hunts a wild pig, and gets sucker-punched by a carp to answer the question: in the age of humans, how does our species decide what belongs?
Episode 2: “Top Predator” premieres Wednesday, July 12 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - There is a killer inside us. Our biology, culture, technology, and economy have transformed our species into the world’s greatest predator. From Yellowstone to Mozambique, Shane explores our global impact as the planet’s Top Predator.
Episode 3: “Man’s Best Friend” premieres Wednesday, July 19 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - Shane discovers why dogs are more than “Man’s Best Friend” – they have been reshaped by evolution into humans’ perfect partner. And just as we’ve transformed them, dogs have left an unmistakable pawprint on us – and the world we share.
Episode 4: “The Replacements” premieres Wednesday, July 26 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - Shane explores the surprising science and unexpected histories of “The Replacements:” five animal and plant species that made allies of humans, grew to dominate the planet alongside us, and changed their destinies (and ours) forever.
Episode 5: “The Urban Jungle” premieres Wednesday, Aug. 2 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - In “The Urban Jungle,” Shane explores the modern city: an ecosystem built by and for us. He encounters three species thriving in the city, reckons with our complex urban history, and envisions a new and wilder urban future.
Episode 6: “The Ground Below” premieres Wednesday, Aug. 9 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - In an episode that hits close to home, Shane explores the history and science of cotton. A prehistoric coastline from North Carolina to Texas laid the foundation for a crop that re-shaped our history, our culture, and even our DNA.
Watch On Your Schedule:
The six-part science documentary, premieres Wednesdays, July 5 - Aug. 9, 2023 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV, and will be available to stream at video.kpbs.org and with the PBS App.
In addition to the broadcast, there will be an eight-part digital companion web series also titled HUMAN FOOTPRINT. Launching in July, the digital series and expands upon many stories featured throughout the broadcast with additional original scripted content, animations and new behind the scenes footage from Shane. The series will be released on PBS Terra, the home for PBS’s science and nature programming on YouTube.
Credits:
Produced by Day’s Edge Productions with Nate Dappen, Ph.D., and Neil Losin, Ph.D., as series producers and directors. Bill Gardner is executive in charge for PBS.
