Three questions for Marie-Monique Robin, investigative journalist and director, winner of the Albert-Londres prize, who will be at a conference in Argentan (Orne), Thursday October 3, 2024. She will present her new film, Long live the microbes.
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What does your film say?
It is the sequel to the previous film, The making of a pandemic, which showed how the destruction of biodiversity in tropical areas causes the emergence of new viral diseases. In this second part, we discover how the absence of biodiversity in our living environments, particularly urban ones, is at the origin of the epidemic of inflammatory diseases, such as asthma or allergies. And also makes us more vulnerable to viruses. Biodiversity is the pillar of health.
What is the relationship between biodiversity and our health?
Fifty years ago, less than 5% of the population suffered from asthma or allergies. Today we are at 35%. The World Health Organization (WHO) speaks of one in two people by 2050. Scientists asked the question and came to the conclusion that the absence of exposure to the biodiversity of microbes in the small Childhood impoverishes the immune system and the intestinal microbiota, which causes these inflammatory disorders. The best protected children are those who live on traditional farms, where they are in contact with animals and drink raw milk.
Why did you want to investigate these subjects?
I’ve been making films for forty years, I started with human rights. And human rights include the right to live in a healthy environment. I have worked a lot on pesticides and endocrine disruptors. We still have a rather romantic relationship with biodiversity. But what we discover with the film is that it really is the pillar of health.
Thursday October 3, 2024, at 2 p.m., screening of the film, and at 7:30 p.m., conference by Marie-Monique Robin followed by a round table with speakers and an exchange with the public, at the Quai des arts, in Argentan. Free. Broadcast of the conference live and replay on the Terres d’Argentan YouTube channel.
