A Wildlife Article from All-Creatures.org

Why is biodiversity critical to life on Earth?

From EthicalGlobe.com
December 2023

Approximately one million species face extinction; events are poised to upend life as we know it. The window for action is small if we want to prevent an entire ecological breakdown, and biodiversity is the only way we can halt this human-made mass extinction.

Many scientists agree that we are living amid the Earth’s sixth mass extinction, which is rapidly accelerating to the point that it will jeopardise the planet’s potential to maintain life.
Collectively, we humans hide behind benign phrases such as “climate change”, “global warming”, “climate variability”, “extreme weather” or “the greenhouse effect” to describe this. But the language we use seems to be creating a disconnect. After all, people say, isn’t change a good thing sometimes? And wouldn’t warmer temperatures be welcome in Northern climes?
Attitudes to biodiversity loss
Maybe this is why many people remain cynical about the reality of the ecological crisis. In 2022, a study by Pew Research Center in the US found that 14% of Americans say there is “no solid evidence” of climate change, while a further 26% say that any changes are due to “mostly natural patterns”.
These attitudes aren’t exclusive to America. Currently, 43% of people in Russia, 41% in Nigeria and 38% in Israel say that climate change is either “no threat” or “a minor threat”. In many other countries, this figure sits around the 25% to 30% mark of people who don’t recognise climate change as an issue.

Topics include:

• Attitudes to biodiversity loss
• What is biodiversity?
• What is a mass extinction?
• Why is biodiversity so critical to life on Earth?
• Ethical issues around biodiversity
• Challenges and solutions

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Please read the ENTIRE ARTICLE HERE.

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