In an effort to increase awareness and encourage positive change, 2010 has been designated the International Year of Biodiversity by the United Nations.
What is biodiversity?
Basically, it’s the variety of life on earth: plant and animal species and the ecosystems that sustain them.
How does this variety affect our daily lives?
From the foods we eat to climate change, biodiversity affects us all.
Why should we be concerned?
Loss of biodiversity on the planet is happening at a rapid rate.
For example…
- Forests are being changed into croplands with devastating effects to climate.
- Species of plants and animals are being harvested at unsustainable rates.
- Changes to the timing of flowering and migration routes are affecting relationships between species within ecosystems.
- Introduced invasive species (plants, animals and micro-organisms) are threatening native species by competing for food and habitat.
- Pollution is creating dead zones in the ocean which can no longer sustain life.
What can be done at the local level?
Doing something about biodiversity can be as simple as encouraging the growth of native trees in your yard as opposed to growing exotic species that require extra maintenance to ensure their survival. It’s always amazed me how people move from the city to the country wanting to be close to nature, and then work so hard to tame the wild spaces in order to make them look ‘civilized.’
In the year ahead, I’ll be writing more on the subject of biodiversity, but for now it’s enough to simply introduce the subject.
We cannot win this battle to save species and environments without forging an emotional bond between ourselves and nature as well – for we will not fight to save what we do not love.
~ Stephen Jay Gould
For more information about 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity, see the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Thank you for this post. I look forward to hearing more about it and what we can do.
You are very wise Obi Wan !
Sybil
I think perhaps the most persuasive argument for protecting biological diversity is that it is simply more beautiful and complex and surprising. It is more pleasurable to live in a world full of wonders.
Gerry, you are SO right. Biodiversity’s positive effect on the soul is immeasurable.
Did you read Berndt Heinrich’s essay on forests and carbon emissions? That the Kyoto agreement actually encourages clear-cutting? I have a link to it on my Dec. 22 post.
Thanks for the heads-up on this year’s designation. I’ll be keeping my eyes and ears open.
Thank you for mentioning the essay Pamela. It can be found on The New York Times site at
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/20/opinion/20heinrich.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2
For those who don’t have time to read the entire essay, you summarized its main points very well in the second half of your ‘Sunshine on Snow, Trees on the Brain’ post at
http://booksinnorthport.blogspot.com/2009/12/sunshine-on-snow-trees-on-brain.html
Great post, Amy! Great photos! I look forward to hearing more about biodiversity.
Yousei, Sybil and Joan, biodiversity is such a ‘diverse’ subject, my next challenge will be in figuring out what to write about next. Glad you liked the post.
As for the photos, I thought we were due for a bit of green
It’s a great subject for the year!
And it will be interesting to see what concept you will make to show us diversity of your area
Nadezhda, hopefully you will find something relevant to your part of the world too.
Green is a wondermous sight right now, hey? The chapters on Biodiversity the kids have here in school are always some of my favorites! Looking forward to learning more, Miss Amy!
It sure is Cindy. It’s remarkable how refreshing it is. Science books for kids have come a long way over the years. Even adults can learn so much from them.
This is a very important issue, can’t wait to hear more from you on it. I am always learning more about my local environment, and even though I still dream of travel, I get much enjoyment from my natural surroundings here at home.
Grace, between the forests and the ocean, the local environment here offers so much variety. Unlike you, so many Nova Scotians take it for granted.
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[...] has designated 2010 as the Year of Biodiversity. You can read more about why biodiversity matters here. If you own land, you might consider leaving some of it in its natural state. One simple [...]
I’ve always cringed when I’ve seen these highly “civilized” gardens etc – now I have a reason for my cringing! Thanks for the reminder…
Pepsoid, civilizing nature is so labour-intensive. You’d think it would be more popular to just let nature be.
The popularity of labour-intensiveness… is another example of the folly of the presumed “virtue” of hard work…!