What Have We Done to the Earth? ‘Human Footprint’ Provides a View of Our Global Impact

Courtesy of PBS

In our short time on the 4.5 billion-year-old Earth, humans have brought light to the night sky, cultivated land to grow food and transformed swampland into jungles of steel and concrete.

Biologist Shane Campbell-Staton is the tour guide of Human Footprint, a six-part PBS documentary series that takes viewers on an illuminating exploration of how human progress and technology have changed Earth’s physical and ecological makeup.

Human Footprint looks into how global transportation has given a free ride to non-native species, how wolves developed into our closest friends, how modern cities are homes to the natural world in surprising ways and how a single plant — cotton — forever changed humanity.

Here's a first look at our new series, #HumanFootprint on @PBS: Our Impact on Planet Earth. Check it out!https://t.co/llzH6CV1j6

— Shane Campbell-Staton, Ph.D. (@SCampbellstaton) June 7, 2023

“Hosting Human Footprint has been one of the greatest adventures of my life,” Campbell-Staton says. “This journey really helped me to better understand the depth and breadth of our impact. 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.”

Human Footprint Episode Guide

All episodes air at 9pm ET/PT. Check local PBS listings.

July 5: “Strangers in Paradise”: The premiere episode shows examples of how humans have introduced and must now deal with invasive species.

July 12: “Top Predator”: Campbell-Staton shows how human biology, culture, technology and economy have put us at the top of Earth’s food chain.

July 19: “Man’s Best Friend”: Campbell-Staton reveals how canines have been reshaped by evolution into humans’ perfect partner. And just as we’ve transformed them, dogs have left an unmistakable pawprint on us.

July 26: “The Replacements”: Campbell-Staton reveals how five animal and plant species made allies of humans, grew to dominate the planet alongside us and changed their destinies (and ours) forever.

Aug. 2: “The Urban Jungle”: Modern cities are an ecosystem built by and for humans. Campbell-Staton encounters three species thriving in the city, reckons with our complex urban history, and envisions a new and wilder urban future.

Aug. 9: “The Ground Below”: Campbell-Staton explores the history and science of cotton, and how a prehistoric coastline from North Carolina to Texas laid the foundation for a crop that reshaped our history, our culture and even our DNA.