This December 2016, Arte broadcasted a beautiful documentary series: Tous les Parfums du Monde (All perfumes of the world). The series takes us on a trip around the globe to discover four emblematic raw materials of perfumery, which are unfortunately today finding their existence threatened. Their cultural, economic and environmental importance makes us aware of the fragile environment in which they operate, but also the essential role to be played by the players of the fragrance industry. It is a superb, eloquent series, involving perfume and traveling; which I hope will lead to many more…

Throughout the world, the biodiversity of plant species is at risk. Among these species at risk includes the fragrant plants: many natural essences are now disappearing or denaturing, and with them is all the richness of the perfumes of the world that is also being threatened. Around the preservation of these fragile and unique resources, projects of a new kind multiply: they associate indigenous populations and great names of perfumery, ancestral knowledge and scientific expertise, sustainable exploitation and fair trade.

Thus, through these episodes, the series highlights a common problem to each precious plant: the threat of its disappearance and with it, the risk of disappearing original odors. And yet, these odors contribute to the memory of people, their history and therefore their identity. That is why, from France to Venezuela, through New Caledonia and Comoros, men are fighting to preserve both a part of their heritage and a part of themselves.

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