This film introduces viewers to a diverse group of scientists, nature lovers, gardeners, farmers, and bug enthusiasts in exploring the importance of flying insects amid rapid declines in their numbers. This most numerous group of animals on the planet by far — three quarters of all species — they literally hold ecosystems together. Insects were the first animals to evolve flight nearly 440 million years ago, and they survived all five of the known mass extinctions since then. But there is evidence that the pace of decline among insects is fast approaching the levels of previous catastrophes. What this means for the rest of life on Earth, including humans, is the focus of The Little Things that Run the World. The film documents the mysteries of the declines alongside creative and heroic human efforts to change the course of evolutionary history. What is causing this extinction crisis? What can be done to reverse the trend? The Little Things that Run the World attempts to find answers to those questions and more.