Media
“We continue to provide the latest coverage on politics, the economy, and the environment including climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.”
Check out the new BIOHME web app that connects humans to biodiversity and ecosystem services!
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Climate change and biodiversity loss are two of the most pressing issues of the Anthropocene.
Source: IPBES 2019 Global Assessment (Fig. 1)
Source: IPBES 2019 Global Assessment (Vimeo video)
“We continue to provide the latest coverage on politics, the economy, and the environment including climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.”
“Balanced budget, economic growth, infrastructure, healthcare, immigration, climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss are all on the ballot this election.”
“We forecast in next fiscal year losses due to inflation, supply chain, taxation, debt restructuring, pollution, climate change, and biodiversity loss.”
“Class, following math and reading we will continue our lesson on the environment with issues very important to the Earth: climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.”
“End Global Inequality and Extreme Poverty! Save our planet from Disease and Pollution! Stop Climate Change and Biodiversity Loss!”
“You know I’m really starting to worry about the economy, political division, healthcare, climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.”
Source: Stockholm Resilience Centre Planetary Boundary Framework (2022)
Climate change causes prolonged and intense heatwaves, and biodiversity with transpiration of trees and plants can bring a coolness and reduce urban heat island effects.
Climate change causes more extreme weather events, and biodiversity with healthy rivers, wetlands, and coral reefs across coastlines and floodplains can absorb and buffer storm surges and flooding.
Land degradation and soil pollution cause more crop yields to decline, and biodiversity with rich soil organisms can regulate and regenerate soil health and stabilize food supply with diverse crops and livestock.
Land use changes and climate change cause more widespread droughts, and biodiversity with healthy freshwater and vegetative cover can regulate water quality, flow, supply, and enhance groundwater systems.
Global trade and changing ecosystems cause spread of invasive pests and diseases, and biodiversity with native and diverse species in place of non-native, monocultures can mitigate prevalence of such pests and diseases.
High temperature and dry conditions increase fire seasons and wildfires, and biodiversity with diverse forests in genes and species can spread risk, increase resistance to stresses, and promote resilience to forest systems.
Industries and agriculture contribute to air pollution and carbon emissions, and biodiversity with healthy forests, wetlands, mangroves, seagrass, and other biomes can naturally capture and sequester carbon and toxic particulates.
Modern economies often measure the accumulation of produced capital (roads, machines, buildings, factories, and ports) and human capital (health and education) but overlook natural capital and biodiversity provides such value with raw materials, resources, and regulation of environment that support commerce and livelihoods.
A society free from conflict, inequality, and uncertainty requires a stable climate and healthy ecosystems for basic amenities, occupations, and recreation, and biodiversity supports such requirements through functioning carbon, nitrogen, and water cycles and habitat maintenance.
Since the dawn of human civilization, species and ecosystems have been integral in human cultures including languages, arts, foods, customs, beliefs, and values and biodiversity (akin to human diversity) serves as this living library and heritage.
Physical, mental, and social health and well-being require a stable climate and healthy ecosystems and biodiversity serves these needs with air, water, and food quality; medicinal supply; hazard and disease protection; recreation and inspiration.
Robust critical infrastructure of water, energy, food, and commodity supply requires vital inputs and biodiversity provides water flow and quantity; food pollination and seed dispersal; and natural resources for fiber, fuel, and timber.
Essential human survival needs of air, water, food, and shelter requires a stable climate and healthy ecosystems and biodiversity provides such habital existence for humans and many other species.
Although the media and general public overlook biodiversity loss for various reasons, scientists have consistently asserted the devastating consequences of continued loss of biodiversity which is accelerating at unprecedented levels in human history.
Such loss negatively impacts ecosystem services such as life-critical needs of food production, soil formation, water availability, air quality, climate regulation, medicines, and still others. See Reports discussing this crisis over the last 50 years.
Owing to its popularity over the years, climate change has become synonymous with all environment or green issues and therefore encompasses all ecological crises. In reality, climate change is only one issue under the umbrella of nature crises.
In fact, climate is just one of several planetary boundaries of the Earth System which includes biodiversity, ozone, freshwater, land use, nitrogen and phosophorus cycle, chemicals, and others. See Figures for other diagrams of planetary boundaries.
Though the issue lacks mainstream media attention, biodiversity loss has been an enduring subject matter in the ecological and environment science literature since the 1970s. It is widely accepted and well-established with enough impetus to establish a UN convention in 1992 for global initiatives on the issue and intergovernmental science body in 2012 to assess the current knowledge on the topic for policymakers.
See Reports that includes three global assessments across the decades (1995, 2005, and 2019) each with stark findings of rapid biodiversity loss due to human activities.
While the two crises share mutually reinforcing and overlapping causes and effects, the scientific evidence over decades demonstrates both crises are distinct issues and should not be conflated without acknowledgment of their unique and shared qualities.
Consequently, the approach to solve one may negatively or positively affect the other. See Figures that show graphics of overlap, trade-offs, and synergies between the two planetary emergencies.
While species extinctions and ecosystem shifts are natural processes on Earth including five known mass extinction events, the present situation of biodiversity loss exceeds the natural occurrence in geological timescales. Also, unlike past events, the current rapid loss of biodiversity and ecosystems is mostly due to a single species aware of their actions.
See Quotes which includes the finding from IPBES’s 2019 Global Assessment: the rate of extinction is ten to hundreds of times higher than the average background rate in the last 10 million years and is accelerating.
Biodiversity coverage in the media has been a challenge for decades and in turn causes a lack of awareness among the general public. Studies (IIED (2008), Veríssimo, et. al (2014), Legagneux, et al. (2018), and Bradshaw, et al. (2021)) have discussed the under-reported media coverage and messaging of biodiversity loss. As an unfortunate result, only experts tend to know about this planetary crisis.
Even Sir Robert Watson, who either chaired or co-chaired all three global biodiversity assessments acknowledge in a The Guardian op-ed how much biodiversity has been ignored despite its severity and critical importance.
Ordovician
Extinction
440 million
years ago
Due to glaciation causing habitat
loss and later global warming
85% loss of mostly marine plant
and animal species
Devonian
Extinction
365 million
years ago
Due to loss of oxygen and global
cooling causing habitat loss
75% loss of mostly marine plant and
animal species
Permian
Extinction
252 million
years ago
Due to volcanic activity causing
global warming
95% loss of
marine and land, plant and animal
species
Triassic
Extinction
201 million
years ago
Due to volcanic activity causing
global warming
80% loss of
marine and land, plant and animal
species
Cretaceous
Extinction
66 million
years ago
Due to asteroid impact causing
atmospheric debris
75% loss of
marine and land, plant and
animal species
Holocene
Extinction
12,000 years ago
to Present
Due to human
activities causing habitat loss and climate change
??%
loss of
wild and domestic species
Sources: National Geographic Mass Extinctions Infographic and Britannica Mass Extinction Event
Logging |
Poaching |
Overfishing |
Dredging |
Emitting |
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Spraying |
Dumping |
Draining |
Encroaching |
Degrading |