The Water Brothers, TVO’s award-winning eco-adventure documentary series, returns for its fourth season Fridays at 7:30 pm EST beginning March 3rd. Hosted, written and produced by Tyler and Alex Mifflin, the series explores how we can better protect our planet’s most precious resource. In season 4, The Water Brothers takes audiences to the Amazon to demonstrate the vital role trees play in the planet’s water cycle, investigates stealth technology aimed at stopping illegal fishing in the South Pacific, and looks at how one of the most popular cuisines in the world may be due for a revolution.
The Water Brothers is part of TVO’s lineup of groundbreaking documentaries that provide intelligent, in-depth exploration of issues that affect us. It is unique programming like this that leads us to challenge our assumptions, answer our questions, and pose new ones.
“The Water Brothers have taken us on a thrilling learning adventure over the past three seasons,” says John Ferri, TVO’s Vice President, Current Affairs and Documentaries. “I hope the series continues to inspire citizens to become more informed about and engaged in the vital water issues affecting our world.”
In the fourth season of The Water Brothers, Tyler and Alex continue their globe-trotting ways to demonstrate how water connects us all. Episodes include:
March 3 – Flying Rivers – There is more water in the air above it than in the mighty Amazon. Tyler and Alex journey across the Amazon rainforest to show the effects of deforestation on the water cycle, and meet with innovative farmers and Indigenous communities who are trying to protect forests while maintaining high productivity.
March 10 – The Big Leak – Across North America, approximately 30 per cent of all treated drinking water is lost to leaks in pipes before reaching our homes. Tyler and Alex venture into this hidden underworld and investigate what can be done to fix our aging water networks.
March 17 – Ocean Spies – Tyler and Alex head to the South Pacific nation of Palau to document how illegal fishing is threatening local food security. They continue on to London, California and Hawaii to learn how drones and satellites can help developing nations like Palau establish low-cost methods for surveillance and enforcement.
March 24 – On Thin Ice – Tyler and Alex explore the Athabasca glacier in Alberta to see how snowpack loss and glacial melt threatens the water supplies for millions of people. Next, they head to the world-renowned Experimental Lakes Area (ELA) research centre in Northern Ontario where they determine how warming waters and reduced lake ice cover is harming freshwater ecosystems.
March 31 – More Food, Less Water – An astounding 70 per cent of all the freshwater that humans use is for agriculture and 60 per cent of that water is wasted. Tyler and Alex travel across North America to meet with farmers using innovative technologies to combat water waste in agriculture.
April 7 – The End of Sushi – Tyler and Alex travel across North America to investigate the impact that sushi has on health of the ocean and meet sushi chefs who are introducing customers to more sustainable seafood options.
“We are extremely excited about our fourth season,” says Tyler. “We are honoured to have a platform where we can help raise awareness and hopefully encourage viewers to take action and help address some of the biggest environmental challenges we face in the world today.”
Alex and Tyler’s passion for educating and engaging the public about important environmental issues does not end with each episode. The Water Brothers will also release six new instalments of their award-winning online, interactive Dive Deeper series, created in conjunction with the award-winning animation studio Thought Café. www.thewaterbrothers.ca
The Water Brothers is commissioned by TVO and produced by SK Films. Over the past six years, Tyler and Alex have travelled the globe from the highest peak in Africa to the world’s mightiest rivers, deserts, and the bottom of the ocean, exploring some of the most important water stories of our time. Winners of the BBC Earth Best Newcomers award at the UK’s Wildscreen Festival, known as the “Green Oscars”, as well as taking home the Best Broadcast Series award at the 2016 Blue Ocean Film Festival, Tyler and Alex strongly believe in ensuring that audiences and particularly young people are aware of the challenges the planet faces in relation to water and the emerging solutions to overcome them.
The Water Brothers is also available online the day after the first broadcast of each episode at tvo.org, and on TVO Sundays at 8:30 pm and 1:30 am, and Mondays at 7 pm.