Finalist in the Science & Nature - Long Form, Limited Series and Editing categories!
Produced by Day's Edge Productions for PBS
Humans have been transforming the Earth for millennia. And we’ve made enemies along the way: species that destroy crops, spread disease, and disrupt ecosystems we depend upon. But we’ve also got allies – species we’ve enlisted to fight on our side. They’ve reshaped our world too. But is the enemy of an enemy always a friend?
In The Enemy of My Enemy, host Shane Campbell-Staton embarks on a global journey to investigate one of humankind’s most ancient and powerful tools: “biocontrol.” The term describes the ingenious alliances that we’ve forged with animals, plants, and even microbes, using one species to control another.
But it’s a long and twisted road from understanding nature to controlling it. The species we recruit to help defend our interests don’t always act in the ways we predict, and the results can be catastrophic – a cure worse than the disease. So can we harness biocontrol to vanquish our enemies without creating new foes in the process?
From a rice paddy in Thailand to a golf course in Australia, from a massive Colombian city to a tiny California farm, Shane’s deep dive into the world of biocontrol reveals that we didn’t conquer this planet alone. And as we reckon with an uncertain future, our partnerships with other species will become more important than ever… Because if there’s one thing the story of biocontrol can tell us, it’s that humans have extraordinary allies in the Tree of Life… and we rise or fall together.
- Runtime55 minutes
Finalist in the Science & Nature - Long Form, Limited Series and Editing categories!
Produced by Day's Edge Productions for PBS
Humans have been transforming the Earth for millennia. And we’ve made enemies along the way: species that destroy crops, spread disease, and disrupt ecosystems we depend upon. But we’ve also got allies – species we’ve enlisted to fight on our side. They’ve reshaped our world too. But is the enemy of an enemy always a friend?
In The Enemy of My Enemy, host Shane Campbell-Staton embarks on a global journey to investigate one of humankind’s most ancient and powerful tools: “biocontrol.” The term describes the ingenious alliances that we’ve forged with animals, plants, and even microbes, using one species to control another.
But it’s a long and twisted road from understanding nature to controlling it. The species we recruit to help defend our interests don’t always act in the ways we predict, and the results can be catastrophic – a cure worse than the disease. So can we harness biocontrol to vanquish our enemies without creating new foes in the process?
From a rice paddy in Thailand to a golf course in Australia, from a massive Colombian city to a tiny California farm, Shane’s deep dive into the world of biocontrol reveals that we didn’t conquer this planet alone. And as we reckon with an uncertain future, our partnerships with other species will become more important than ever… Because if there’s one thing the story of biocontrol can tell us, it’s that humans have extraordinary allies in the Tree of Life… and we rise or fall together.
- Runtime55 minutes