for the first time, a massive survey of the great barrier reef is taking place, with ordinary people he bbc spoke to prof peter mumby, chief scientist at the great barrier reef foundation: 0ne one of the challenges of dealing with the great barrier reef is as its name suggests, it's enormous, it is about the size of italy. scientists can only monitor the health of a small fraction of it. there are some things that we really need, such as simple reconnaissance information that you can get from a handful of photographs from the great barrier reef taken underwater, well within the capability of anybody in the camp so we're trying to mobilise the enthusiasts there to get out there to a number of reefs and ta ke there to a number of reefs and take a series of photographs that can be analysed, both by them, by experts and from people around the world who wa nt to people around the world who want to get involved from the armchair. this is of course one of the great wonders of nature. all of these corals will spawn simultaneously and we know that some reefs are much more important than others

storm washes away one of australia's most famous features but there's better news from the great barrier reef. thank you for joining us we begin in the u.s. where thousands of people are getting their 1st vaccines against the coronavirus it's a pivotal moment for the country that's been hit hardest by the pandemic with the national death toll fast approaching the incalculable last of 300000 people a new york intensive care nurse who street at some of the sickest cove in 1000 patients for months was the 1st person in the u.s. to receive the vaccine made by pfizer and by on take regulators approved it for emergency use on friday and almost 3000000 doses of seen since being shipped across the country medical workers and elderly care home residents are being prioritized during roll out. it didn't have any different from it in any other. way than where . i would like to thank you for the front line workers and i will be doing your. part and they're all over the world. are you. hopeful i feel hopeful. relieved. i feel like i'm in. well staff at the white house won't be among the 1st people to be im

storm washes away one of australia's most famous speeches but there is better news from the great barrier reef. it's a tragedy on the scale of events that have reshaped america and the world for decades coronavirus has now killed more than $300000.00 people in the u.s. the country statistically hardest hit by the pandemic it comes on the day that thousands of people there have received their 1st vaccines a new york intensive care nurse who was treated some of the sickest cove in 1000 patients for months was the 1st person in the u.s. to receive the vaccine made by pfizer and biotech regulators approved it for emergency use on friday and almost 3000000 doses have since been shipped to right across the country medical workers and elderly care home residents are being prioritized during the rollout. different from any other. thing where. i would like to thank the workers. who've been doing their part and they're all over the world. are you. really. i feel like i'm in. well canadians have also started receiving their pfizer bio on take vaccine with 30000 doses expected to arrive this week the 1st

to grow and transport coral on the great barrier reef i was under. who they may not be the most vibrant but these corals are healthy and resilient and represent a major lifeline for the most spectacular ecosystem of its kind on the planet. they're part of the very 1st trial of in vitro fertilization for corals or coral i.v.'s. coral large by our collective during what are called mass spawning events they're rare annual moments linked to the cycles of the moon then baby corals are cultivated in floating nursery pools before being transplanted onto damaged areas of the reef. 4 years later the original population has grown large and even survived coral bleaching events. this proves that the lava restoration take works just as we predicted and we can grow very large corals from tawny microscopic larvae within just a few years. scientists say the success of this project is critical for the great barrier reef the un listed world heritage site runs more than 2000 kilometers along australia's north east coast but it's being severely damaged by climate change

the bbc spoke to professor peter mumby, chief scientist at the great barrier reef foundation. rmous — it's about the size of italy. scientists can only monitor the health of a small fraction of it. there are some things that we really need, such as simple reconnaissance information that you can get from a handful of photographs from the reef taken underwater that's well within the capability of anybody with a camera. and so we're trying to mobilise the enthusiasts there to get out to a large number of reefs and take a series of photographs that can be analysed both by them, by experts, but also from people around the world who want to get involved from their armchair. this is, of course, one of the great wonders of nature. all of these corals will spawn simultaneously. we know that some reefs are much more important than others at driving recovery. the most important reefs will be those that are still in pretty good shape now, so they have lots of adults so they can produce lots of eggs, but they're also in the position so that they send those new corals to places in need. some

scientists say the success of this project is critical for the great barrier reef the un listed world heritage site runs more than 2000 kilometers along australia's northeast coast but it's being severely damaged by climate change and ocean warming it's lost more than half of its coral in the past 3 decades impacting many other species that depend on it at the beginning of december its status was downgraded to critical and deteriorating that prompted environmental experts to call on the australian government to step up its efforts to protect the reef it's abundantly clear. what we. media in significant we don't need to be true. and we need to be watching. leadership as well broad policy change may take longer to achieve but harrison and his team say they're optimistic their technique will work. soon these will be the world's 1st transplanted coral populations to start reproducing on their own. and it's hoped they'll start to really grow what's been lost on the great barrier reef alexandra byers al-jazeera. parts of chile and argentina went dark on monday as a solar eclipse blacked out

conservationists advise the un are blaming climate change for pushing this trail years great barrier reef corals into critical condition the corals are said to be into kind gizzi ocean warming and that's impacting several marine species shows great barrier reef is a un the city natural world heritage site. this is al jazeera these are the headlines the u.k. government has approved the pfizer and biotech over vaccine for general use committee says it expects to start inoculating those most at risk including health workers care home residents from next week british prime minister boris johnson says the vaccine is a reason to be hopeful still a long fight ahead it will inevitably take some months before all the most vulnerable are protected long cold months so it's all removed vital that as we celebrate this scientific achievement we're not carried away with overoptimism or fall into the naive belief that the struggle is over it's not we've got to stick to our winter plan. russia's president has ordered officials to begin mask over $1000.00 vaccinations next week vladimir putin says there wi

conservationists advise the un are blaming climate change for pushing the straightly is great barrier reef corals it's a critical condition the corals are said to be in decline gizzi ocean warming and that's impacting several marine species is great barrier reef is a un the state's natural world heritage site. this is al jazeera these are the headlines the u.k. government has approved the pfizer and biotech covert vaccine for general use committee says it expects to start inoculating those most at risk including health workers care home residents from next week british prime minister boris johnson says the vaccine is a reason to be hopeful still a long fight ahead.

scientists say the success of this project is critical for the great barrier reef the un listed world heritage site runs more than 2000 kilometers along australia's north east coast but it's being severely damaged by climate change and ocean warming it's lost more than half of its coral in the past 3 decades impacting many other species that depend on it. at the beginning of december its status was downgraded to critical and deteriorating that prompted environmental experts to call on the australian government to step up its efforts to protect the reef it's abundantly clear. what we need. to the. media in significant we don't need to be chary know when we need to be. and we need to be. in leadership as well broad policy change may take longer to achieve but harrison and his team say they're optimistic their techniques will work. soon these will be the world's 1st transplanted coral populations to start reproducing on their own. and it's hoped they'll start to really grow what's been lost on the great barrier reef alexandra byers al-jazeera. and bobber sarah is going to be here in a co

ecosystems like the great barrier reef in australia. or monarch butterfly biosphere reserve in mexico are under threat this year is on course to become the 2nd toughest on record after 2016 and the u.n. secretary general sent out a dire warning humanity is waging war on nature the zs suicidal nature always strikes back and he's already doing so force and feuding. biodiversity collapsing when 1000000 species at its risk of extinction eco systems are these appearing before our eyes there's the wetlands are being lost every year most 10000000 tonnes of forests oceans are overfished and. according to the world meteorological organization greenhouse gas concentrations climbed to a new record in 2019 have risen so far this year despite an expected drop in emissions she took over $1000.00 knockdowns. tourism hunting fishing and livestock grazing are playing a role in the crisis. less visible was an increase in marine heat to record levels. more than 80 percent of the world's oceans experienced a heatwave. the shrinking of the ice caps and blea

and it's hoped they'll start to really grow what's been lost on the great barrier reef alexandra byers al-jazeera. you're watching which is there of means the whole raman a reminder of our top news stories president elect joe biden has told americans that democracy prevailed soon after the electoral college fully validated his victory in the november presidential election all states serve already certified the results given by the wind and the electors are reflecting that outcome she has more on the president elect joe biden's speech from wilmington in delaware this was a positive a positive species 0 point was look the system worked monday's certification by the electors in the electoral college the latest example of that before that as you mentioned the states of certified biden's win where he had won the courts have thrown out most of the legal challenges even republican appointed judges even judges appointed by donald trump even supreme court judges appointed by dog trouble rejected them the system has won so now it's time to turn the page not only that he was praising the american

and it's hoped they'll start to really grow what's been lost on the great barrier reef alexandra byers al-jazeera. say this is down to 0 these are the top stories and president elect joe biden says democracy has prevailed after members of the u.s. electoral college formally validated his victory in the presidential election by accuse donald trump of trying to sabotage the will of millions of voters by challenging the results ship returns he has more on the speech from wilmington intel this was a positive a positive speech is 0 point was look the the system worked monday's sort of occasion by the electors in the electoral college the latest example of that before that as you mentioned the states of certified biden's win where he had the courts have thrown out most of the legal challenges even republican appointed judges even judges appointed by donald trump even supreme court judges appointed by dog trouble rejected them the system has won so now it's time to turn the page not only that he was praising the american people for coming out to vote for the victory of democracy well u.s. att

and it's hoped they'll start to really grow what's been lost on the great barrier reef alexandra byers al-jazeera. and now a reminder of the top stories on al-jazeera the 1st americans and canadians have been vaccinated against the corona virus a new york intensive care nurse was the 1st person to be inoculated in the u.s. with thousands of other caregivers prioritize that to receive the jab but this good news comes too late for many with several states still in the great proposed thanksgiving case surge and the number of american deaths has now passed 300000 at equal hate has more 200 hospitals are at full capacity in this country more than a 3rd of americans live in places where their hospitals are running ridiculous short of intensive care beds in one state they've already given the ok to ration care meaning doctors decide who has a chance to live and who probably is going to die and so here's the concern the numbers are just growing exponentially what we're seeing is what officials said it was going to happen is that if you travel for thanksgiving and you go see your gramma and you

pandemic conservationists who advise the un are blaming climate change for pushing the strain is great barrier reef corals into critical condition the corals are said to be into crying jussi ocean warming and nance impacts in marine species the strain is great barrier reef is a un listed natural world heritage sites. 3 prominent hong kong democracy activists have been jailed for their role last year's protests just won't act this child and i've learned the found guilty of unlawful assembly when received a 13 and a half month sentence child on the lam jailed for 10 and 7 months respectively him brand has more from hong kong. it's become an end of the day ritual outside west kalou magistrates court a crowd chants defiant slogans as prison vans take away those convicted on trial over last year's unrest but the throng was bigger on wednesday so it was impossible to see which of the vehicles contained the 3 high profile activists among the more than 2000 people prosecuted since last you joshua one agnes char and ivan lamb avoided a heavier sentence after pleading guilty last week the trio's detractors c

and in australia, an incredible discovery at the great barrier reef.— that's taller than the empire state building. and the largest animals on the planet also made a surprise comeback. blue whales almost vanished from our oceans, wiped out by hunting in the early 20th century, but this year there were signs of recovery. scientists are surveyed in the waters around south georgia and in one month spotted nearly 60 of the whales. in half a century of surveys, only a handful have ever been seen. the team says that the new count is astonishing. it is absolutely thrilling, because they are critically endangered. so just seeing this many animals in south georgia waters suggest that it is becoming an important feeding area for them again. and this is what they are eating — krill. the waters are teeming with these tiny creatures. and it's this abundance of food that has driven the recovery. scientists think there may be as many as 10,000 blue whales now. this giant of the deep is edging back from the brink. even though it has been a challenging year, the planet

ecosystems like the great barrier reef in australia. or monarch butterfly biosphere reserve in mexico are under threat this year is on course to become the 2nd hottest on record after 2016 on the u.n. secretary general sent out a dire warning you many think he's waging war on nature the zs suicidal nature always strikes back and he's already doing so we'll go in force and funi. biodiversity is collapsing 1000000 species on its risk of extinction eco systems are these are beating before our eyes deserts are spreading wetlands are being lost every year we most 10000000 ector's the forests oceans are overfished and shocking we mustn't waste. according to the world meteorological organization greenhouse gas concentrations climbed to a new record in $2019000.00 have risen so far this year despite an expected drop in emissions she took over $1000.00 knockdowns. tourism hunting fishing and livestock grazing are playing a role in the crisis. less visible was an increase in marine heat to record levels more than 80 percent of the world's oceans

ecosystems like the great barrier reef in australia. for monarch butterfly biosphere reserve in mexico are under threat this year is on course to become the 2nd toughest on record after 2016 and the u.n. secretary general sent out a dire warning you many think he's waging war on nature the zs suicidal nature always strikes back and he's already doing so we're going force and feuding . biodiversity is collapsing 1000000 species on its risk of extinction eco systems are these are beating before our eyes deserts are spreading wetlands are being lost every year we lost 10000000 eggs and forests oceans are overfished and shocking with plastic waste. according to the world meteorological organization greenhouse gas concentrations climbed to a new record in 2019 have risen so far this year despite an expected drop in emissions she took over $1000.00 knockdowns. tourism hunting fishing and livestock grazing are playing a role in the crisis. less visible was an increase in marine heat to record levels more than 80 percent of the world's oceans e

and it's hoped they'll start to really grow what's been lost on the great barrier reef alexandra byers al-jazeera. that this is out there and these are the headlines officials in the u.s. electoral college are preparing to formally vote the next president and vice president the electors will gather in all states in a few hours to begin casting a ballot they're expected to confirm joe biden and coming to harrison's victory alan fisher has more for us from the white house donald trump doesn't believe that it all ends here with the electoral college vote he believes that come january the 6th which is an important day when congress gets to meet to ratify the decision of the electoral college that there will be enough republicans there who will stand up and see hold on a 2nd this isn't right there was widespread electoral fraud and therefore this result can't be ratified that's simply not going to happen and of course in many many court cases the republicans have failed to produce any evidence of widespread voter fraud vaccination of u.s. health where health care workers and the elderly is

scientists call on tourists to help map australia's vulnerable great barrier reef,

conservationists advising the un blaming climate change for the critical condition of australia's great barrier reef the corals are said to be in decline due to ocean warming which is impacting marine species the reef is a un listed natural world heritage site around 8000 people in a remote community in indonesia seeking shelter from an active volcano authorities of raise the alert level or mount any level talaq as jessica washington reports from jakarta. on the boat island in indonesia's southernmost province the says mt. thousands usually live on the slopes of the volcano accustomed to its quiet grumbling close to their homes. but days ago a large eruption triggered panic among the local population ashot more than 4 kilometers into the sky people fled their homes and sought shelter to free that i was so scared i fed my goods quickly and took off to the town the volcano is still highly active authorities have closed the nearby airport and set up a safety zone the bag was at the up but there was still eruptions this morning every time it happens this thick smoke coming from the u.k. new emergency sh

conservationists who advise the un a blaming climate change for the critical condition of australia's great barrier reef the corals are said to be in decline due to ocean warming and that's impacting marine species the reef is a un listed natural world heritage site. former french president very. a king architect of european integration has died in western france after contracting covered 19 it was 94 years old at the back of his life. this would prove the most fiercely fought presidential election in french history the young finance minister valerie she's scheduled to star facing socialist leader fos one meter when the votes were counted she scott had pulled off a remarkable thick tree beating me to hole by a slender margin. of course the margin could have been bigger but in a presidential election what matters is the decision that you have taken and the responsibility which i will take on i understand that in this campaign you want to change political change economic change and social change you will not be disappointed the new president of the republic described himself as a conservative who likes ch

problem, they'll be able to fly to the mall deaves, they'll be able to go to, you know, the great barrier reef to look at the sharks and what not. all the things that they love doing skiing involved is there no problem, but for the rest of the middle class has been depressed and crushed the working, class forget it. they're on u.b.i., universal basic income in this plan. and the green new deal is being funded by raiding the pensions of the, of the next generation and the current generation and the last generation and what they call releasing liberating 4 trillion or 10 trillion it to fund greentech. if you remember cylinder under obama, that $500000000.00 boondoggle that produced no solar panels multiply that times 10000 that's the sort of money you're talking about with the green new deal that they want to do. this is just an opening for the massive amount of corporate fraud . basically do nothing, projects, jobs for my friends, they're talking about sustainable green jobs. you've got to be, if it exists, think the example of the combustible engine? i mean, this is what a lot of working peopl

ecosystems like the great barrier reef in australia. for monarch butterfly biosphere reserve in mexico are under threat this year is on course to become the 2nd hottest on record after 2016 and the u.n. secretary general sent out a dire warning you many think he is waging war on nature the zs suicidal nature always strikes back and he's already doing so we're going force and funi. biodiversity collapsing when 1000000 species on its risk of extinction eco systems are these are beating before our eyes there's a thought spreading wetlands are being lost every year we most 10000000 eggs and forests oceans are overfished and shocking with. according to the world meteorological organization greenhouse gas concentrations climbed to a new record in 2019 and have risen so far this year despite an expected drop in emissions she took over $1000.00 knockdowns. tourism hunting fishing and livestock grazing are playing a role in the crisis. less visible was an increase in marine heat to record levels more than 80 percent of the world's oceans experie

ecosystems like the great barrier reef in australia. for monarch butterfly biosphere reserve in mexico are under threat this year is on course to become the 2nd hottest on record after 2016 on the un secretary general sent out a dire warning humanity is waging war on. the zs suicidal nature always strikes back and he's already doing so we'll go in force and few. biodiversity collapsing 1000000 species on its risk of extinction eco systems are these are beating before our eyes there's a wetlands are being lost every year most 10000000 eggs and forests oceans are overfished and shocking. according to the world meteorological organization greenhouse gas concentrations climbed to a new record in 2019 and have risen so far this year despite an expected drop in emissions due to cope with 19 knockdowns. tourism hunting fishing and livestock grazing are playing a role in the crisis. less visible was an increase in marine heat to record levels. more than 80 percent of the world's oceans experienced a heatwave. the shrinking of the ice caps and b

third of unesco's world heritage sites, places like the olympic national park and australia's great barrier reef, all under very high threat. so the u.n. is imploring world leaders, commit to a future without carbon pollution that's warming our planet here is cnbc's contessa brewer. >> nature always strikes back, and it is already doing so with growing force and fury >> reporter: our climate is changing rapidly, severely the evidence is clear, and the impact is real scientists point to the events we have watched unfold around us throughout 2020. the hottest temperatures on record in australia contributing to massive wildfires and in brazil and on the u.s. west coast, drought in south america and europe, severe flooding in africa, china and southeast asia and a record-breaking atlantic hurricane season. >> the change in the arctic is not only for the region, but the whole global climate system. anything change in the arctic affect also the weather. the heat waves r. >> reporter: the impact on wildlife polar bears starving as arctic sea ice continues shrinking. marine life dying off as the ocean b

suppose was the tipping point, was when i dived on a coral reef, which i'd known well, on the great barrier reefaustralia, and suddenly saw a cemetery. suddenly it was dead. and these-- these corals, this extraordinary, wonderful construction of corals, was dead, white. and that was a shock. >> brangham: there is, if i may say, a genuine sense of sadness and melancholy that is throughout this project. i mean, in the past, youould often talk about man's impact on the world, but would move on, in a sense, then move to the next story, to the next scene. >> well, you put it very well. that is exactly what i think. and we-- you know, you-- you i mean, i'm an elderly chap. and i look at my grandchildren and wonder what's going to happen. and all i know is that if you see these things and realize what they mean, you simply can't sit back and say, "well, i'm not going to bother." >> this film is my witness statement, and my vision for the future. >> brangham: attenborough argues for a rapid shift to renewable energy, to sustainable agriculture, for a slowing of population growth, and for what he calls a

guinea, but now making his way south heading towards the coast of australia currently over the great barrier reef. the livery now more than 800 million presence around the world, we'll be right back. are you tired of clean clothes that just don't smell clean? what if your clothes could stay fresh for weeks? now they can! downy unstopables in-wash scent boosters keep your laundry smelling fresh way longer than detergent alone. pour a cap of downy unstopables into your washing machine before each load and enjoy fresher smelling laundry. with 6 times the freshness ingredients, downy unstopables gives you more of what you love. if you want laundry to smell fresh for weeks make sure you have downy unstopables in-wash scent boosters. we're going to find the perfect tree. we're going skating. we're going to nana's. wherever you go this holiday, chevy can help you get there. which is why we're making our chevy... ...employee discount available to everyone. the chevy price you pay... ...is what we pay. not a cent more. so wherever you go, happy holidays from chevy. use the chevy employee discount for ever

says a 3rd of the 252 sites listed by unesco and now at high risk pushing some places like the great barrier reef into critical condition the world's largest tropical wetlands have been burning for months record wildfires in that america's panton our region have already consumed around 28 percent of the flood plains rising temperatures are also helping the spread of invasive species in protected areas such as south africa's cape floral region peter said is the director of the world heritage program at the conservation agency that issued this report joins us live from south in switzerland via skype thank you very much need for being with us so i understand that you did a report 3 years ago how much has changed since then. thanks lauren it's really nice to join you. we undertake these outlook assessments as they are cold every 3 to 4 years so there are a kind of health check on the state of the world's natural world heritage sites and we've we've undertaken them since 2014 so we've we've this is the 3rd update so we've had them from 24 to 2017 and now 2020 where seeing we're seeing some shifts but

that are at risk or of the tyria rated due to global warming 2 that are critical a strain is great barrier reef has already seen extensive damage as ocean warming extreme weather of added to the coral decline. warming waters are also disrupting marine life in mexico's gulf of california threatening the delicate migratory system that maintains that particular ecosystem to talk to we're back told who is the director of it as goes world heritage center she joins us now live via skype from paris good to have you with us so climate change is now the number one threat to the world's heritage sites is that right absolutely so what's being done. you know this guy has been at the forefront after addressing climate change actually since 2005 at the time there are numbers of n.g.o.s day it came to the world heritage committee writs rehab in south african descent we cannot continue like this you need to deal with it so what we did be prepared a policy a document on climate change but we also worked on the studies the day is international mountain face though i would like to mention especially the mountain

are blaming climate change for the critical condition of australia's great barrier reef the corals are said to be in decline because of ocean warming and that's impacting marine species the reef is a un listed natural world heritage site. china's lunar probe has finished collecting soil samples and is preparing to return to earth the 1st such mission in more than 40 is the long march 5 lander is mapping the area and using ground penetrating radar to search for minerals and wash. still ahead on al-jazeera as n.b.a. teams return to training the league reveals that 9 percent of canadians have tested positive for 19 they don't have the details in sports. i'm next door says peter thank you very much n.b.a. teams have only been back at training for 2 days but some are all ready making big changes to their lineup the houston rockets have traded russell westbrook to the washington wizards the all star point to god moves after just one season with the rockets who were eliminated in the playoffs westbrook will join up with former oklahoma city thunder coach scott brooks at the wizards meanwhile

and in australia, an incredible discovery at the great barrier reef.lso made a surprise comeback. blue whales almost vanished from our oceans, wiped out by hunting in the early 20th century, but this year there were signs of recovery. scientists surveyed the waters around south georgia and in one month spotted nearly 60 of the whales. in half a century of surveys, only a handful have ever been seen. the team says that the new count is astonishing. it is absolutely thrilling, because they are critically endangered. so just seeing this many animals in south georgia waters suggest that it is becoming an important feeding area for them again. and this is what they are eating — krill. the waters are teeming with these tiny creatures. and it's this abundance of food that has driven the recovery. scientists think there may be as many as 10,000 blue whales now. this giant of the deep is edging back from the brink. even though it has been a challenging year, the planets at least were in perfect alignment. the orbit of mars brought it on a very close approach to