What can nature teach us? It’s a question that mankind has investigated since the beginning of time. We’ve learned so much, but there’s still even more that we don’t know. That’s why people like David Attenborough dedicate their lives to studying the world around us.

The lessons that David has learned over the years have filled multiple hours of television programming and even more publications and writings. One particular opinion of his, on the role of zoos in our society, stands out in today’s focus on the ethical treatment of animals.

“I think the zoos have two very important functions.  I’m quite sure that they will serve as refuges for species endangered.  And I’m quite sure that you can’t wait until the species is actually on the verge of extinction before you discover how to look after it.  And there is a technology of animal husbandry in zoos which we have to learn and can only learn through experience, and that experience resides in zoos.”

Listen to audience members pick the brain of decorated natural historian David Attenborough in this Q&A session in the latest episode of the Free To Choose Media Podcast, David Attenborough.