India, May 8 -- Sir David Attenborough, who turned 99 on Wednesday, is no stranger to the wild and the unusual. This birthday greeting is a plea from the desolate landscape of higher education and for the planet he loves - save the social sciences and humanities! Help them to learn and communicate about our beautiful planet.

Attenborough's work brings to us the interconnectedness and the delicate balance of Life on Earth. These television series, books, lectures and documentary films reveal our Planet Earth, igniting in us a spirit of oneness with nature, a sense of awe and humility, and a combination of deep respect, love and valour. They amplify our need to know how different we are as a species. Our exosomatic urges of accumulation an...