The Nature of Things

History

The first host was Donald Ivey, with Patterson Hume co-hosting many episodes. Following Ivey's departure, the second season continued with several guest hosts, including Lister Sinclair, Donald Crowdis, and John Livingston. David Suzuki became the show's host and narrator in 1979, He was succeeded by co-hosts Sarika Cullis-Suzuki (David's daughter) and Anthony Morgan.

The series has won many awards and Suzuki has won three Gemini Awards and one ACTRA Award as best host. Documentarian William Whitehead has also been a frequent writer for the series.

In 1979 the show was merged with David Suzuki's Science Magazine series and expanded to an hour. There is one new episode every week which all contribute to a scientific understanding of how the world works. They are created not only for entertainment, but also to encourage and popularize education.

An episode in January 2018 was widely criticized by scientists and Native Americans for its uncritical presentation of the Solutrean hypothesis.

In 2023, Suzuki announced his retirement and was succeeded as host by his daughter, Sarika Cullis-Suzuki, and Anthony Morgan in 2024.

Notable episodes

• Wild Africa, 1970 – a film shown in two parts which won the Canadian Film Award for Best Documentary
• "Reefer Madness 2", 15 October 1998 – on the effects of medical marijuana and people dealing with its legalization
• "The Investigation of Swissair 111", 2 September 2003
• Darwin's Brave New World, 1 November 2009 – a three-part miniseries on the life of Charles Darwin as he wrote The Origin of Species
• "The Downside of High", 2010 – on marijuana's negative effects towards mental illness
• "Untangling Alzheimer's", 17 July 2014 – a medical investigation from a very personal perspective
• Wild Canada, 2014 – a four-part miniseries focusing on high-definition video footage of Canadian nature and wildlife

Episodes

Main article: List of The Nature of Things episodes

References

References

1. MacDowell, Laurel Sefton. (2012). "An Environmental History of Canada". University of British Columbia Press.
2. (5 January 2012). "50 Years of the Nature of Things". [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].
3. "CBC-TV: The Nature of Things with David Suzuki: History". [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].
4. Bernstien, Jaela. (2022-10-23). "David Suzuki announces retirement from The Nature of Things, says he's ready to focus more on environmentalism". [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].
5. (2022-10-24). "This will be David Suzuki's last season of The Nature of Things". [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].
6. Suzuki, David. (2022-10-25). "David Suzuki prepares to bid farewell to The Nature of Things: a letter to viewers". [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].
7. Dragacevic, Nina. (2022-11-30). "Meet the new hosts of The Nature of Things: Sarika Cullis-Suzuki and Anthony Morgan". [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].
8. Ransome, Noel. (December 1, 2022). "Sarika Cullis-Suzuki to co-host 'The Nature of Things' after her father retires". [[National Observer (Canada).
9. "About the Show". The Nature of Things.
10. "Director defends documentary that claims Europeans could have been lst humans in North America". [[CBC Radio]].
11. Brean, Joseph. (12 January 2018). "CBC under fire for documentary that says first humans to colonize New World sailed from Europe". National Post.
12. (30 December 2023). "Welcome to the new Nature of Things!".
13. Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To ...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards''. [[Stoddart Publishing]], 2000. {{ISBN. 0-7737-3238-1. pp. 89–91.
14. "''Reefer Madness'' 2". [[CBC-TV]].
15. Maze, Talia. (1 June 2005). "Three for the Price of One". Ryerson Review of Journalism.
16. "The Downside of High". [[CBC-TV]].
17. (17 July 2014). "Untangling Alzheimer's". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.