
Back to All News
Breaking Boundaries': The Road to a Cleaner, Healthier and More Peaceful World
Johan Rockstr m
Founder of the Stockholm Resilience Centre, Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, and Professor in Earth System Science at the University of Potsdam and Chief Scientific Advisor for Conservation International
Entertainment
22 April 2021
Global
Professor Johan Rockstr m (pictured) is an internationally recognized scientist on global sustainability issues. Imagine you are driving down a mountain road at night. Your foot presses hard on the accelerator. There are no safety barriers. As the road twists and turns, one miscalculation and the car will spin off the edge. And, by the way, the headlights have been switched off.
This could be the opening scene from an Alfred Hitchcock film. But this is the story of our lives.
As an Earth system scientist, I make sense of the world through data. However, I realize that people make sense of the world through stories. In the past two decades I have come to see that the biggest story in science today is a story of high drama, suspense and action. As a species, humanity is careening close to the edge. Our impact on nature is bringing us dangerously close to planetary boundaries. These are the thresholds myself and colleagues have identified ranging from climate change and the loss of species to the ozone layer and ocean acidification.
How close are we to the edge? This is the story we tell in a new Netflix documentary Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet, coming this summer.
Humanity has enjoyed a 10,000-year stretch of relative stability on Earth - a state of grace. This stability is the foundation of farming and our civilization. Everything we know and love depends on it.
It is tempting to think this is another climate story. But it is much bigger. It is about Earth's life support system - the biosphere, a thin veil clinging to the surface of Earth where life thrives. My work is about understanding the interactions between Earth's climate, ecosystems and life, the ocean and ice sheets, rivers, lakes and soils, forests and farms, the carbon cycle and people - the economy, governments, consumers. As a species, as a global civilization, we are now in the driver's seat. We are the main force for change in the biosphere.
But we can raise the drama up a notch. Our children are sitting in the backseat. They are shouting turn on the headlights. Listen to the science. This is our future. Our generation may be the last with the ability to keep our planet within the boundaries we need to thrive and prosper.
One person knows this better than anyone: Sir David Attenborough.
David is the greatest natural storyteller of our time. It was an immense privilege to work with David on this documentary. He has inspired generations of people. Now through Netflix we hope to reach even more people to inspire them to become planetary stewards - protectors of our global commons.
As Sir David says: With major global decisions on biodiversity and climate change taking place this year there has never been a more important time to communicate the science of what is happening to our planet. The research featured in Breaking Boundaries is one of the clearest explanations I've seen of the threats we face and how we might tackle them. I hope that after watching this film many more people will see the urgency of our current situation and be inspired by the possibility of creating a stable healthy future for ourselves and the rest of the natural world.
The key message from the film is that we still have time. We are an endlessly innovative species. Cooperation is our superpower. And we are beginning to see signs that major change is coming. The science is clear on what humanity needs to do. There are three priorities: cut greenhouse gases to zero, protect the wetlands, soils, forests and oceans that absorb our impacts, and change our diets and the way we farm food. This is the mission. And everyone benefits. We will live in a cleaner, healthier and more peaceful world. Imagine that same car, safely at home and the children asleep in their beds at night.
More from Netflix
19/04/2026
Back to All News
Alpha Males Films Its Sixth and Final Season
Entertainment
19 April 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Download the image
Followi...
17/04/2026
Back to All News
A Turn-of-the-Century Superpower Adventure of Goofy Misfits: ...
16/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils Trailer for Glory': A Gritty Tale of Sacrifice and Suffering
Entertainment
16 April 2026
GlobalIndia
Link copied to c...
16/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils Trailer for Glory': A Gritty Tale of Tyaag, Balidaan & Kasht
Entertainment
16 April 2026
GlobalIndia
Link copied to ...
16/04/2026
Back to All News
Johnny Massaro and Rodrigo Santoro to Star in Netflix's Th...
16/04/2026
Back to All News
One Unforgettable Night in an Unfamiliar Place Shakes Everyday...
16/04/2026
Back to All News
The Law According to Lidia Po t': How Italys Beloved Lega...
15/04/2026
Back to All News
The Countdown Has Begun! Netflix Drops Trailer and Release Dat...
15/04/2026
Back to All News
Celebrating BEEF' Season 2 and Storytelling That Connects Cultures
From left to right: Matthew Kim, Jinny Howe, Lee Sung Jin, Seoyeon Ja...
15/04/2026
Back to All News
Made in New Jersey: Dan Levy's New Comedy Big Mistakes...
13/04/2026
Back to All News
Thank You Next, Another Self and Graveyard Return to Netflix W...
13/04/2026
Back to All News
Rafa, the Rafael Nadal Documentary, Premieres on Netflix on May 29
Entertainment
13 April 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Disco...
09/04/2026
Back to All News
Love, Sacrifice and Vengeance Collide in My Dearest Assassin&...
09/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Drops the Gripping Trailer for The Chestnut Man: Hide and Seek'
Entertainment
09 April 2026
GlobalDenmarkFinlandNorwaySweden
...
09/04/2026
Back to All News
The Marked Woman Premieres on Netflix on June 5
Entertainment
09 April 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Download the first image...
09/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Animation Studios Opens Its New Home in Vancouver
Netflix Animation Studios Vancouver ribbon-cutting ceremony (L-R) Vancouver Deputy ...
08/04/2026
Back to All News
Agent from Above' Celebrates Divine Ascent to Global Rank...
08/04/2026
Back to All News
Official Poster Revealed for My Two Cents, the New Animated Se...
07/04/2026
Back to All News
Revenge, Rage & Redemption: Netflixs Sports Thriller Glory...
07/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Opens New Offices and Unveils Its Made in Argentina Slate for 2026-2027
Entertainment
07 April 2026
GlobalArgentina
Link copied ...
07/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Reveals ONE PIECE Expansion With New Original Titles a...
06/04/2026
Back to All News
Revenge, Rage and Redemption: Netflix's Sports Thriller Gl...
06/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Expands Kids Entertainment Lineup With Playground App ...
03/04/2026
Back to All News
Kanjoosi Mein Koi Compromise Nahi: Netflix Drops the Trailer f...
03/04/2026
Back to All News
Competition Heats Up with Intrigue and Spices: Netflix Unveils...
03/04/2026
Back to All News
Radioactive Emergency Ranks #1 On Netflix's Global Top 10 ...
02/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils Official Trailer for The Trials of Winnie Mandela
Entertainment
02 April 2026
GlobalSouth Africa
Link copied to clipboard
...
02/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Announces Start of Production and New Cast for Second ...
02/04/2026
Back to All News
The Trailer for Ronaldinho: The One and Only Features Never-Be...
01/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Steps Up to the Plate: MLB Opening Night on Netflix Sc...
01/04/2026
Back to All News
A Demon Falls for a Human in Long Vacation: Netflix Greenlight...
01/04/2026
Back to All News
All WWE Is Now Live Only on Netflix in Italy
Entertainment
01 April 2026
GlobalItaly
Link copied to clipboard
ALL WWE IS NOW LIVE
ON NET...
31/03/2026
Back to All News
The Son-in-Law, the New Film From Gerardo Naranjo, James Scham...
30/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Announces the Reunion for Love is Blind: Sweden Season...
30/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Announces the Reunion for Love is Blind: Sweden Season...
30/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils New Images From the Second Season of Gangs of Galicia
Entertainment
30 March 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Do...
30/03/2026
Back to All News
The Latest on Netflix Anime, Unveiled at AnimeJapan 2026
Entertainment
30 March 2026
GlobalJapan
Link copied to clipboard
From romance an...
29/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Celebrates 10 Years in Poland and Supercharges Warsaw ...
26/03/2026
Back to All News
Have a Wish Worth Dying For? Netflix's First Korean YA Hor...
26/03/2026
Back to All News
The Truthers, Starring Jose Coronado and St phanie Magnin, Pre...
25/03/2026
Back to All News
Andrea Beltr o, F bio Assun o, Claudia Abreu and Marco Ricca ...
25/03/2026
Back to All News
A Toaster, One Miser & Total Mayhem: Netflix's Toaster...
25/03/2026
Back to All News
Ryo Saeba Is Back: Netflix Sets City Hunter 2' for Worldw...
25/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Announces the Start of Production for Reasonable Doubts
Entertainment
25 March 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Download...
25/03/2026
Back to All News
2026 World Baseball Classic Becomes the Most-Watched Program ...
24/03/2026
Back to All News
Straight to Hell' Main Trailer Begins to Unmask Japan'...