"Well firstly, I would urge parents (all adults in fact) to see a film called Racing Extinction. It’s a few years old but it’s a good place to start. Then I’d encourage these same grown-ups to read Half Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life by E.O. Wilson. With these under their belt, they’ll be in a great place to start thinking about how to explain the situation to their kids. In my opinion, our understanding of our place in the world needs to be firmly grounded in Science, especially biology. I am often astounded by the disconnect in people’s minds between their day to day life and our absolute reliance on the natural world. Unfortunately we seem increasingly trapped in a culture of rogue materialism that is bankrupting our planet. We simply cannot continue with the business as usual model when it comes to consumption. There also needs to be much more accountability and transparency in how things are procured and produced, their long term environmental impact and pollution. I’ve often felt that too many academic disciplines – especially at tertiary level – are taught in isolation, and Economics is a prime example. So broadening the education system to prioritise environment is critical. In the end, there is one overriding cause that unites us all, the health of our biosphere which underpins the very fabric of life on which we all depend for our survival. We live on a finite planet, a fact that we ignore at our peril. Turning things around should be our number one priority."