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International Year of Biodiversity – Investing in Nature, Improving Lives
The world is facing a
global extinction crisis which threatens not only the natural environment but
mankind itself. All life on earth depends upon species, ecosystems and natural
resources. This must be safeguarded before it’s too late, as we are destroying
the very natural infrastructure that supports us, at an ever increasing rate.
“Well managed natural resources are crucial to sustainable development,
supporting peaceful communities, encouraging well-balanced economic growth and
helping reduce poverty,” says Julia Marton-Lefèvre, Director General of IUCN.
“Protecting biodiversity protects valuable assets that are vital to the global
economy.”
The latest update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ showed that 22
percent of all known mammals, 30 percent of all known amphibians, 12 percent of
all known birds, and 28 percent of reptiles, 37 percent of freshwater fish
species, 70 percent of plants, 35 percent of invertebrates, assessed so far, are
under threat.
Some estimates suggest that the current global rate of species extinction due
to human activity is about 1000 times the natural rate of loss. With targets to
reduce the loss of biodiversity by 2010 not close to having been met, IUCN is
calling for a stronger Convention on Biological Diversity to safeguard life on
earth, in all its forms.
“We are facing an extinction crisis,” says Jane Smart, Director, IUCN
Biodiversity Conservation Group. “We need to remember that extinction is
irreversible, once a species is extinct it is gone forever. The loss of this
beautiful and complex natural diversity that underpins all life on the planet is
a serious threat to humankind now and in the future.”
IUCN is calling for ambitious but realistic biodiversity targets, which can
be clearly measured and put into practice. It also wants more research on the
status of biodiversity, more protected natural areas, on land and sea, and
closer collaboration with the business community to find new ways of combining
conservation and commerce. Greater public awareness of what’s at stake if we
continue to disturb and destroy ecosystems is also considered to be a high
priority.
“Biodiversity is the basis of all life on earth,” says IUCN’s Head of
Ecosystem Management Programme, Neville Ash. We need practical action and
supportive policies to conserve species, manage and restore ecosystems,
including protected areas and the wider landscape, and promote the sustainable
use of natural resources.” - IUCN
More information:
 IUCN
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