Together with the British Embassy in Baku, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, and the Heydar Aliyev Center, the British Council has held a private screening of the COP26 People’s Advocate David Attenborough’s documentary, A Life On Our Planet. The film is a powerful first-hand account of humanity’s impact on nature and a message of hope for future generations.
In the film, David Attenborough reflects upon the defining moments of his lifetime as a naturalist, and recounts the evolutionary history of the life on Earth to grieve the loss of willd places and offer a vision for the future. The film has been created by award-winning British filmmakers Silverback Films and the global environmental organisation WWF. The film was globally released and is distributed by Netflix from 4 October 2020.
The screening was held on 9 September, 19.00 at the Heydar Aliyev Center, and brought together key stakeholders from the government of Azerbaijan, the private and public organisations, embassies, and the international community. The Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, Mr. Mukhtar Babayev, has also attended the screening.
This November the UK will host the UN climate change conference COP26 in Glasgow. World leaders will meet with the aim to agree how to tackle the urgent threat of global climate change.
The film supports COP26 nature-based solutions theme and reiterates the need for countries to protect and restore the earth’s natural habitats and ecosystems, on which our climate, air, water and way of life depend. The David Attenborough film is an opportunity to showcase the work done on the British Council’s COP26 #TheClimateConnection campaign which reinforces the UK’s COP26 Presidency.
On the same day, 9 September 2021, we also launched our Global Youth Letter, an urgent call to action for society’s leaders and emerging climate champions to unite to end the climate emergency once and for all. The Global Youth Letter crowdsources the views, experiences and aspirations of 8,000 young people across 23 countries.
The British Council also want to take the opportunity to congratulate Güllü Huseyn, a young Azerbaijani engineer who was selected as one of the finalists of our #TheClimateConnection #DestinationZero challenge. She was selected by the panel of mentors and made it to the number two from 226 submissions globally! Güllü is producing energy efficient, temperature regulating wall and ceiling panels.
The 2022 edition of the British Film Festival in Azerbaijan, brought to you by the British Embassy in Baku and the British Council, will also feature several remarkable and diverse films focusing on climate emergency.
The British Council is working with partners across the UK and worldwide to support the success and legacy of COP26, creating opportunities for climate cooperation, dialogue and action. We have recently launched 17 creative commissions in response to climate change and COP26 that will explore climate change through art, science, and digital technology. Funded by British Council, the creative commissions will bring people together from the UK and 28 countries in varied cultures, from indigenous communities and rural areas to bustling metropolises to understand each other’s perspectives and collaborate on creative responses and solutions towards climate change.