David Suzuki is retiring from ‘The Nature of Things’ next year | Catch My Job

Canadian television icon David Suzuki, who has taught many of us remarkable science tidbits over the years, is handing over the reins as host of a CBC radio show The nature of thingsannouncing that it will make its final broadcast in the spring of 2023.

Suzuki, now 86, hosted the program for exactly 43 years — it began on October 24, 1979 — but now says it’s time to move on and let someone else take over.

“I was fortunate to be blessed with good health, which allowed me to continue hosting the show long after my ‘best date,'” Suzuki said in a CBC press release issued Sunday night.

“Aging is a natural biological process that creates an opportunity for fresher, more imaginative contributions from younger people, and I’ve been warning about it for years to ensure it continues.” The nature of things, we have to prepare for the transition when I’m gone. That moment is now.”

Suzuki joined the CBC in 1971 with a TV series Suzuki about science. In 1974, he developed and hosted a long-running popular radio program Quarks and quarksand several more TV specials followed.

His position as one of Canada’s most popular personalities was forged when he took over as host The nature of things. As a testament to its wide appeal, the scientific journal was renamed The Nature of Things with David Suzuki and doubled from the original half-hour format.

It would be hard to find a Canadian over the age of 30 who doesn’t know who Suzuki is.

CBC will announce plans for the show in the coming weeks.

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The company’s executive vice president, Barbara Williams, said Suzuki leaves an “indelible legacy.”

“David made science more accessible to countless viewers in Canada and around the world, finding new ways to demystify our complex world and illustrating how the future of humanity and the natural world cannot be separated – long before climate change became a hot topic,” Williams said. said in a statement.

In an interview with Ian Hanomansingh on NationalSuzuki says he’s not comfortable calling it retirement: “I’m just moving on.”

Suzuki has long been known as an outspoken eco-activist and has occasionally faced criticism for his views on climate and the environment.

Last year, he had to apologize for a comment he made during an interview in which he warned there would be “pipelines in the air” if governments did not act quickly on climate change.

“Any suggestion that violence is inevitable is wrong and will not lead us to a desperately needed solution to the climate crisis,” he said in his apology.

“My words were uttered out of utter frustration and I apologise.

The David Suzuki Foundation said the remarks “arise from years of observation of government inaction as the climate crisis continues to worsen”.

— With files from The Canadian Press

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