For over a century, Disney has created stories that celebrate the wonders of the world we all share. And for more than 136 years, National Geographic has been synonymous with inspiring a deeper connection to our world. This year, these two powerful legacies are coming together to celebrate this beautiful planet we call home and the power within each of us to create change for the better.

ourHOME will bring compelling stories to the forefront, including highlighting efforts being undertaken as part of Disney Planet Possible, our commitment to taking meaningful and measurable action to support a healthier planet for people and wildlife. A new digital series will be released spotlighting three Disney Planet Possible stories with National Geographic talent visiting Walt Disney World Resort to see the work firsthand.

Disney+ marks the occasion with the launch of an ourHOME content collection, featuring some of the very best storytellers and content creators celebrating the planet, including the critically acclaimed series Queens, A Real Bug’s Life, Incredible Animal Journeys, along with the full library of Disneynature films.

Additionally, on Earth Day, 22 April 2024, the latest installment of Nat Geo’s Emmy^® Award-winning Secrets Of… franchise, Secrets of the Octopus, narrated by Paul Rudd, will premiere on Disney+ and on National Geographic Wild. The full series will broadcast from 18:00 (DSTV 182, StarSat 221).

Streaming on Disney+, Disneynature’s all-new feature film Tiger, narrated by Priyanka Chopra Jonas, will journey alongside a young tigress raising her rambunctious cubs in the fabled forests of India, also from 22 April. 

A dedicated ourHOME television spot, featuring the voice of Morgan Freeman, will air throughout the month across the Disney owned television stations, on social media feeds and selected digital platforms across South Africa.

“National Geographic is one of the most beloved and trusted global brands with a combined social media following of more than 750 million people. We harness this reach to remind people that the world is an amazing and miraculous place, filled with beauty, awe and wonder,” said Courteney Monroe, President, National Geographic. “This Earth Month, we hope, by sharing this passion, that we can also inspire others to protect, restore and celebrate our home.”

“Disney is committed to putting possibility into practice and inspiring optimism for a brighter, cleaner and more environmentally sustainable future,” said Yalmaz Siddiqui, Vice President, Environmental Sustainability, The Walt Disney Company.  “We hope the ourHOME campaign with Nat Geo helps bring greater awareness of the beauty and majesty of our planet to audiences everywhere.” 

From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer-at-Large James Cameron, the series travels the world — from the Savannahs of Africa to the urban landscapes of Asia — to discover thestrategic thinking, complex emotions and sophisticated language of elephants. Narrated by Academy Award®-winning actress Natalie Portman and featuring renowned National Geographic Explorer and elephant expert Dr. Paula Kahumbu, the four-part series not only reveals the extraordinarylives of different families of elephants but also highlights how similar they are to us. Secrets Of The Elephants will change everything you thought you knew about elephants forever.

Episodes include:

Desert

This episode reveals the secrets of Namibia’s last remaining desert elephants. When droughts, sandstorms and even floods threaten them, their shared knowledge passed down from generation to generation keeps them alive. This is the toughest place on earth to be an elephant, and their story is one of triumph in a land of extremes.

Savanna

Big families and strong relationships are the basis of success for savanna elephants. As we uncover their secrets, we start to understand their remarkable language. It’s not just noise; they communicate like us. Good leadership and close friendships help them through the hard times as they scale cliffs, find their place in the hierarchy and mourn their dead.

Asia

As humans encroach ever further into their environment, Asian elephants are learning to adjust to the challenges facing them. They know how to use tools to break down electric fences, strike deals with farmers, and develop a cooperative arrangement on tea plantations where they do the weeding without damaging the crops.

Rainforest

The Congo rainforest is home to one of the world’s most elusive species, the African forest elephant. Everything about them—their bodies, their behaviors, their families—is adapted to life in the rainforest. But surviving here means more than just adapting. These elephants have shaped the forest around them to their needs and, in doing so, have created a habitat unlike any other on Earth.

In April 1970, millions of people around the world mobilized to demand protection of the planet we call home. That historic day gave birth to the modern environmental movement known as Earth Day, and 50 years later it’s become the planet’s largest civic event, with more than a billion people participating each year. On this momentous occasion, people worldwide would normally step outside to help clean up our planet, plant trees and restore the beauty of Earth. But this is not a normal year; this year is different — very different. While most of the world is stuck indoors, National Geographic is bringing the natural world inside to inspire hope and awe for the planet.

“Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.”— Dr. Jane Goodall

At a time when people around our interconnected world need hope more than ever, National Geographic commemorates Earth Day with three global, emotionally evocative specials that inspire hope for our dynamic planet, love for its animal inhabitants and actions of stewardship for this generation and those to come.

Atlanta, GA – Mei Lun and Mei Huan, twin giant panda cubs, Ailuropoda melanoleuca, at Zoo Atlanta. (natgeophotoark.org.) (Joel Sartore/National Geographic Photo Ark)

Beginning at 18:00 CAT, simulcast on National Geographic and National Geographic Wild, the two-hour documentary special JANE GOODALL: THE HOPE takes viewers through chapters of Dr. Goodall’s journey, highlighting how she inspires future generations. Following this, peer behind the camera to see what it takes to capture Wildlife in their natural habitat with National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence Beverly and Dereck Joubert in OKAVANGO: RIVER OF DREAMS – Divine Journeys. Join National Geographic Photographer Joel Sartore on his quest to photograph some of the animals in the world in PHOTO ARK: RAREST CREATURES.

“The need to protect our planet has never been more urgent, and we’re using Earth Day 50th as an opportunity to inspire viewers through the wonders of our planet and its incredible species for viewers around the world,” said Courteney Monroe, president, National Geographic Global Television Networks. “With the Earth Day takeover across all of our networks and platforms, we are able to reach the largest audience possible to celebrate this momentous day and ensure that viewers fall in love with our planet and act to protect it.”

It doesn’t end there as National Geographic’s Earth Day event is set to also features the very best of natural-history programming, including recent feature documentaries such as Mystery Gorilla, Vertical Limit, Dark Heart of the Earth, and Fire & Ice, as well as fan favourites Hostile Planet, Wild, One Strange Rock and an array of Destination Wild natural history specials. Throughout the day, additional featurettes will showcase the National Geographic Explorers and photographers working around the world to protect and honour our planet.

This daylong Earth Day programming across National Geographic’s networks complements efforts by the company’s full portfolio. National Geographic magazine’s April issue is timed to Earth Day and explores broad issues affecting the planet today. It is the magazine’s first-ever flip issue, as two mini-magazines take an optimistic and a pessimistic vision of 2070. The issue can be found online at natgeo.com/earthday and on newsstands now.

A special “Save the Animals!” issue of National Geographic Kids magazine, on newsstands now, focuses on five previously endangered animals that have made a comeback and is packed with kid-friendly tips on how we can continue to save animals. An Earth Day Kids digital hub — natgeokids.com/EarthDay — offers family guides with resources and activities to raise awareness about and help Wildlife conservation. This fun site, available now, includes an exclusive “Which Comeback Animal Are You?” personality quiz.

“The life-long passion that conservationists such as Dr Jane Goodall, Joel Sartore and Beverley and Dereck Joubert have dedicated to their respective fields is nothing short of inspirational and remarkable. Through these special Earth Day airings, we hope that viewers across the continent will be equally motivated to become involved and play their part in conservation efforts close to their hearts” said Evert van der Veer, Vice President, Media Networks, The Walt Disney Company Africa.

For more info, please feel free to check here. 22 April, don’t forget to mark the date.