Reports

Review key findings and links to major global reports over the last 50+ years regarding biodiversity loss and natural environment.

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2020-2029

2024

• CMS: State of the World’s Migratory Species

  

  Migratory species are found all over the world - on land, in the water and in the skies. Traversing thousands of miles, these species rely on a diverse range of habitats for feeding, breeding and resting, and in turn, play an essential role in the maintenance of healthy and functional ecosystems…The available evidence suggests that the conservation status of many CMS-listed species is deteriorating. One in five CMS species are threatened with extinction and a substantial proportion (44%) are undergoing population declines…The deteriorating status of migratory species is being driven by intense levels of anthropogenic pressure. Due to their mobility, their reliance on multiple habitats, and their dependence on connectivity between different sites, migratory species are exposed to a diverse range of threats caused by human activity. Most migratory species are affected by a combination of threats, which often interact to exacerbate one another. Habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation (primarily driven by agriculture), and overexploitation (hunting and fishing, both targeted and incidental) represent the two most pervasive threats to migratory species and their habitats according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. Pollution, including pesticides, plastics, heavy metals and excess nutrients, as well as underwater noise and light pollution, represents a further source of pressure facing many species. The impacts of climate change are already being felt by many migratory species, and these impacts are expected to increase considerably over the coming decades, not just as a direct threat to species but also as an amplifier of other threats. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• EEA: Europe Climate Risk Assessment

  

  Human activities have led to unprecedented global warming. The average global temperature in the 12-month period between February 2023 and January 2024 exceeded pre-industrial levels by 1.5°C. 2023 was the warmest year on record over more than 100,000 years globally, at 1.48°C above pre-industrial levels, with the world’s ocean temperature also reaching new heights. Europe is the fastest-warming continent; since the 1980s, warming on the continent was about twice the global rate…Climate-related hazards (e.g. heatwaves, prolonged droughts and floods) in interaction with non-climatic risk drivers (e.g. ecosystem fragmentation, pollution, unsustainable agricultural practices and water management, land use and settlement patterns, and social inequalities) threaten Europe’s food security, public health, ecosystems, infrastructure and economy. Climate impacts can cascade from one system or region to another, including from the outside world to Europe and from Europe to the outside world. Cascading climate risks can lead to system-wide challenges affecting whole societies, with vulnerable social groups particularly implicated. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2024

  

  World fisheries and aquaculture production hit a new high in 2022. Successful initiatives should be upscaled to consolidate the vital role of aquatic foods for global food security, nutrition and livelihoods…Aquaculture can meet the rising global demand for aquatic foods. Future expansion must prioritize sustainability and benefit regions and communities most in need…Global capture fisheries production remains stable, but sustainability of fishery resources is a cause for concern. Urgent action is needed to accelerate fishery stock conservation and rebuilding…Aquatic food systems are directly related to many [Global Biodiversity Framework] targets such as management of aquatic spaces; reduction of species extinction risk; sustainability of use and trade of wild aquatic species; and actions to deter and mitigate the impacts of invasive alien species. FAO is working across stakeholder groups to identify the opportunities and challenges for the timely implementation of the framework in aquatic food systems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of the World’s Forests 2024

  

  The world is facing mounting threats on multiple fronts, and time is running out to take the action needed to avert them. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at its heart, envisions a world free of poverty, hunger, disease and want and where all life can thrive. But urgent action is required if we are to achieve the SDGs…Forests and trees offer cost-effective solutions to the climate and biodiversity crises, and they are integral to the transformation to MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems for better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life, leaving no one behind…The rapid pace of change, and the urgency of addressing global challenges, demand inventive solutions that are diverse, flexible and adaptable and can be scaled up quickly. It is imperative, therefore, to tap into human creativity and embrace innovation, including in the forest sector. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• GRI 101: Biodiversity 2024

  

  GRI 101: Biodiversity 2024 contains disclosures for organizations to report information about their biodiversity-related impacts, and how they manage these impacts…The activities of an organization can exacerbate the direct drivers of biodiversity loss, such as land and sea use change, exploitation of natural resources, climate change, pollution, and the introduction of invasive alien species. Direct drivers have impacts on species and ecosystems while affecting people who rely on ecosystem services for their livelihood. An organization can have impacts on biodiversity through its activities, the activities of its business relationships, or a combination of both. These impacts can also extend beyond the geographic locations of the organization’s activities. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNCCD: Global Land Outlook Rangelands Report

  

  Rangelands operate as complex social-ecological systems with critical values, processes, goods, and services. They are diverse, multifunctional, and encompass a wide variety of ecosystems (e.g., drylands, grasslands, savannahs) that have co-evolved with human communities. Covering over 50 per cent of the Earth’s land surface, rangelands are comprised of grasses, herbaceous plants, and shrubs that are grazed by livestock and/or wildlife. In addition to meat, dairy, fibre, and other animal products, rangelands and their biodiversity underpin critical ecosystem services from local to global scales (e.g., nutrient/water cycling, carbon sequestration, animal/human health). Despite the extraordinary diversity and intrinsic value of rangelands and pastoralist systems, they rarely feature in global policy discussions or national development priorities. Rangelands provide important environmental, social, and economic benefits that are often taken for granted, in part due to the lack of understanding of their extent, condition, use, value, and diversity. While there are many threats to rangeland health, one is the imbalance in the supply and demand for animal forage which leads to overgrazing, invasive species, and bush encroachment as well as the increased risk of drought and wildfires. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Food Waste Index Report 2024

  

  Food waste is a market failure that results in the throwing away of more than US$1 trillion worth of food every year. It is also an environmental failure: food waste generates an estimated 8–10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions (including from both loss and waste), and it takes up the equivalent of nearly 30 per cent of the world’s agricultural land. The conversion of natural ecosystems for agriculture has been the leading cause of habitat loss. Just as urgently, food waste is failing people: even as food is being thrown away at scale, up to 783 million people are affected by hunger each year, and 150 million children under the age of five suffer stunted growth and development due to a chronic lack of essential nutrients in their diets…The connection between food waste and biodiversity loss, moreover, is now recognized in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which specifically calls out halving global food waste by 2030 in target 16. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Global Resources Outlook 2024

  

  The scale of impacts linked to the way material resources are extracted and processed for our global economy are astounding — over 55 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions driving us to the brink of climate catastrophe, up to 40 per cent of particulate matter health related impacts costing over 200 million disability-adjusted life years every year, and over 90 per cent of total land use related biodiversity loss that is the lynchpin of vibrant ecosystems and life on Earth. If not addressed, the impacts of our resource use will derail all hope of meeting Multilateral Environmental Agreements like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and the Convention on Biological Diversity. Despite this, our insatiable use of resources has tripled over the last fifty years. As nations continue their urbanisation and industrialization, and the global middle class expands, there is a corresponding uptick in material use, waste, emissions, as well as water and land consumption. If we do not change, we could see resource use up by 60 per cent from 2020 levels by 2060. Our current deeply unsustainable systems of consumption and production will cumulate in catastrophic impacts on the earth systems and ecological processes that underpin human well-being and the diversity of life on our planet. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Navigating New Horizons

  

  The world is already on the verge of what may be termed ‘polycrisis’—where global crises are not just amplifying and accelerating but also appear to be synchronizing. The triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste is feeding into human crises such as conflict for territory and resources, displacement and deteriorating health. The speed of change is staggering. Social norms, employment, leisure and our relationship with nature are all inexorably shifting. The rapid development of new technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) are influencing all facets of life. Overlapping and interrelated factors will influence the environment— these include competition for natural resources, new forms of conflict, mass forced displacement and migration, persistent widening inequalities, declining trust and weakened institutions, the prevalence of mis/disinformation and an increasing global multipolarity. This new global context is giving rise to a series of critical shifts, emerging issues and potential threats that may or may not eventuate, but which the world needs to keep a watching brief on due to their potential to significantly disrupt different sectors and hence affect planetary health and human wellbeing. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WEF: Global Risks Report 2024

  

  The Global Risks Report 2024 presents the findings of the Global Risks Perception Survey (GRPS), which captures insights from nearly 1,500 global experts. The report analyses global risks through three time frames to support decision-makers in balancing current crises and longer-term priorities…GRPS respondents disagree about the urgency of environmental risks, in particular biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse and critical change to Earth systems. Younger respondents tend to rank these risks far more highly over the two-year period compared to older age groups, with both risks featuring in their top 10 rankings in the short term. The private sector highlights these risks as top concerns over the longer term, in contrast to respondents from civil society or government who prioritize these risks over shorter time frames. This dissonance in perceptions of urgency among key decision-makers implies sub-optimal alignment and decision-making, heightening the risk of missing key moments of intervention, which would result in long-term changes to planetary systems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2023

• GEF: Innovative Finance for Nature and People

  

  Concerted efforts are needed to close the significant gap in global biodiversity financing. Accordingly, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework includes a commitment by the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to substantially and progressively, increase the level of financial investments from all sources, including public, private, domestic, and international, to $200 billion per year by 2030, while substantially and progressively reducing incentives, including subsidies harmful for biodiversity, by at least $500 billion per year by 2030. Public finance is crucial yet insufficient and not sustainable: it needs to be used wisely to catalyze additional private finance and increased action and effectiveness, and mobilize public resources effectively. A range of innovative financing instruments are being deployed in both developed and developing countries, including efforts supporting forest dwellers, payments for ecosystem services (PES), blended finance, debt-for-nature swaps and other debt instruments, carbon markets and the emerging concept of nature certificates. Among them, the report focuses on (1) the up-scaling of high-integrity, biodiversity-positive carbon credits and (2) the development of nature certificate schemes. Both instruments have are generating considerable interest at the moment – both among policy makers and corporates. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• GSI: Global Tipping Points 2023

  

  Human-driven habitat loss, pollution, exploitation and, increasingly, climate change are degrading ecosystems across the planet, some of which can pass tipping points beyond which a ‘regime shift’ to an alternative (and often less diverse or beneficial) ecosystem state occurs. Evidence for tipping points emerges across many biomes. In forests, large parts of the Amazon rainforest could tip to degraded forest or impoverished savanna, while tipping in boreal forests is possible but more uncertain, and whether current temperate forest disturbance could lead to tipping is unclear. In open savannas and drylands, drying could lead to desertification in some areas, while in others encroachment by trees and shrubs could see these biodiverse ecosystems shift to a forested or degraded state. Nutrient pollution and warming can trigger lakes to switch to an algae-dominated low-oxygen state. Coral reefs are already experiencing tipping points, as more frequent warming-driven bleaching events, along with pollution, extreme weather events and diseases, tip them to degraded algae-dominated states. Mangroves and seagrasses are at risk of regional tipping, along with kelp forests, marine food webs and some fisheries, which are known to be able to collapse. Together, these tipping points threaten the livelihoods of millions of people, and some thresholds are likely imminent. Stabilising climate is critical for reducing the likelihood of widespread ecosystem tipping points, but tackling other pressures can also help increase ecological resilience, push back tipping and support human well-being. See report. Download report.

  
  

• ICIMOD: Water, ice, society, and ecosystems in the Hindu Kush Himalaya

  

  The cryosphere of the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) is an important source of water for maintaining ecosystem health, supporting biological diversity, and providing ecosystem services. This biodiversity-rich region – 40% of which is under protected area coverage – is characterised by interconnected and diverse ecosystems. Sixty percent of the region features seasonal cryosphere (snow, glacier, permafrost, and glacial lakes) – a major source of water and other ecosystem services…As a fragile ecosystem, the HKH is extremely sensitive to climate change. Widespread shrinking of the cryosphere – attributable to climate change – is resulting in glacier mass loss, snow cover reduction, shrinkage of permafrost area, changes in hydrology, and increased natural hazards and disasters. Cascading impacts have been reported in most ecosystems, affecting most inhabitant species. A visible range shift of species to higher elevations, ecosystem degradation and changes, decrease in habitat suitability, species decline and extinction, and invasion by alien species have been reported, with significant negative impacts on the flow of ecosystem services, both increasing the vulnerabilities of biodiversity and people and affecting their wellbeing. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES: Thematic Assessment Report on Invasive Alien Species and their Control

  

  Invasive alien species are a major threat to nature, nature’s contributions to people, and good quality of life. Alien species are being introduced by human activities to all regions and biomes of the world at unprecedented rates. Some become invasive, causing negative and in some cases irreversible impacts on nature, including loss of uniqueness of biological communities, contributing to the unparalleled degree of deterioration of the biosphere upon which humanity depends. Invasive alien species cause dramatic and, in some cases, irreversible changes to biodiversity and ecosystems, resulting in adverse and complex outcomes across all regions of Earth, including local and global species extinction. The economy, food security, water security and human health are profoundly and negatively affected by invasive alien species. Invasive alien species can add to marginalization and inequity, including, in some contexts, gender- and age-differentiated impact. Overall, policies and their implementation have been insufficient in managing biological invasions and preventing and controlling invasive alien species. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPCC: Synthesis Report for the Sixth Assessment

  

  Human activities, principally through emissions of greenhouse gases, have unequivocally caused global warming, with global surface temperature reaching 1.1°C above 1850-1900 in 2011-2020. Global greenhouse gas emissions have continued to increase over 2010-2019, with unequal historical and ongoing contributions arising from unsustainable energy use, land use and land-use change, lifestyles and patterns of consumption and production across regions, between and within countries, and between individuals…Climate change has caused substantial damages, and increasingly irreversible losses, in terrestrial, freshwater, cryospheric and coastal and open ocean ecosystems. The extent and magnitude of climate change impacts are larger than estimated in previous assessments…In addition, multiple climatic and non-climatic risk drivers such as biodiversity loss or violent conflict will interact, resulting in compounding overall risk and risks cascading across sectors and regions. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IUCN: Addressing ecological connectivity in the development of roads, railways and canals

  

  The unprecedented rate of linear transport infrastructure (LTI) development such as roads, railways and canals is a key driver of global biodiversity decline. Direct impacts have been documented around the world: primarily habitat degradation, fragmentation and loss, direct species mortality, and the creation of physical barriers and filters to wildlife movement and ecological flows. In addition, other impacts can occur, such as pollution due to noise, light, vibration and chemicals, air and water quality degradation, the spread of invasive alien species and changes in hydrology and microclimate…Without proper safeguards for biodiversity and ecological connectivity, given the present speed and scale of expansion, there lies a high potential to unravel the progress made over the past five decades to designate, design and manage [protected and conserved areas] (PCAs) embedded in ecological networks. Thus, the future will require planners and decision-makers to strike a balance between the anticipated socio-economic benefits of LTI with the challenges of safeguarding healthy ecosystems, ecological connectivity and biodiversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Kew: State of the World’s Plants and Fungi

  

  It is imperative that we take action to tackle the current nature crisis, for the simple reason that all life on earth depends on biodiversity. The resources and services that nature provides – from food to fresh water – have arisen through eons of ecosystem-building by microbes (including fungi), plants and animals, and their interactions with geochemical processes. Because we are currently degrading ecosystems, releasing greenhouse gases into the air and polluting water resources at such a rapid rate, we risk destabilising the global equilibrium that these evolutionary processes have established. Effectively managing the plants and fungi that form the building blocks of our habitable planet is key to halting wider biodiversity loss and restoring earth’s ecosystems to full function. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• NatureServe: Biodiversity in Focus: United States Edition

  

  Diverse and healthy plant communities provide the foundation for abundant wildlife and resilient ecosystems. However, according to NatureServe data, 34% of all plant species in the United States are at risk of extinction. This is an alarming general finding, but certain taxa face even greater threats. For example, 48% of cactus species are at risk of extinction, while around 200 tree species (about 20%) are at risk of extinction. Of the hundreds of grass species that form our nation’s great prairies and marshes, about 19% are at risk of vanishing forever. Preventing plant extinction is essential to maintaining ecosystem function and the services that wildlife and people rely upon. An alarming percent of animal species are at risk of extinction in the United States —40%, according to our estimate. As a group, species associated with fresh water, including amphibians, snails, mussels, crayfish, and many aquatic insects, have the highest percentage of at-risk species, highlighting the importance of conservation strategies to protect freshwater ecosystems. Among pollinators, bees are particularly threatened, with 37% of assessed species at risk. The conservation needs of these, and other invertebrate species, are often overlooked, yet many invertebrates are integral to maintaining the ecological functions of freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. Overall, 41% of the ecosystems in the United States are known to be at risk of range-wide collapse due to extensive threats such as land-cover conversion. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• ShareAction: Point of No Returns 2023 Part IV: Climate and Biodiversity

  

  Our environment is being radically altered by human activity, and we are rapidly running out of time to secure a sustainable and liveable future for people and planet. Climate change has already widely impacted both people and nature and will only accelerate if action is not taken now. Biodiversity, and its systems that help sustain human life, are rapidly deteriorating worldwide. Species loss is so great that the sixth mass extinction event in Earth’s history is under way…However, business and finance have not yet acknowledged that biodiversity loss is as important as climate change…We cannot secure thriving natural ecosystems without a net zero economy, and this requires the finance sector to play an active role…We found that asset managers need stronger and more comprehensive interim net-zero targets, consistent with limiting temperature rise to 1.5C. These must go hand in hand with asset managers directing capital towards the climate transition. Asset managers’ recognition of the importance of biodiversity has grown since our 2020 survey, but their responses to the biodiversity crisis remain considerably weaker than their responses to climate change. There are few commitments on biodiversity, and risk assessments remain inadequate. In many cases, firms have not yet understood the links between these issues. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• State of Nature Partnership: State of Nature 2023

  

  The UK, like most other countries worldwide, has experienced a significant loss of biodiversity. The trends in nature presented here cover, at most, 50 years, but these follow on from major changes to the UK’s nature over previous centuries. As a result, the UK is now one of the most nature-depleted countries on Earth. The main causes of these declines are clear, as are many ways in which we can reduce impacts and help struggling species. The evidence from the last 50 years shows that on land and in freshwater, significant and ongoing changes in the way we manage our land for agriculture, and the effects of climate change, are having the biggest impacts on our wildlife. At sea, and around our coasts, the main pressures on nature are unsustainable fishing, climate change and marine development. More broadly there has been growing recognition of the value of nature, including its role in tackling climate change, and the need for its conservation among the public and policymakers alike. With each report our monitoring of change improves and we have never had a better understanding of the state of nature. Yet, despite progress in ecosystem restoration, conserving species, and moving towards nature-friendly land and sea use, the UK’s nature and wider environment continues, overall, to decline and degrade. The UK has set ambitious targets to address nature loss through the Global Biodiversity Framework, and although our knowledge of how to do this is excellent, the size of the response and investment remains far from what is needed given the scale and pace of the crisis. See report. Download report.

  
  

• UNEP: Decades of Mangrove Forest Change

  

  In order to address the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity and nature loss, and pollution and waste, humanity needs to manage Earth’s critical marine and coastal ecosystems more effectively. Mangrove forests are one such habitat. Mangroves create a protective green wall between land and sea, which reduces the impact of storms and erosion. They also provide a wide range of goods and services that support the economic and social wellbeing of millions of people who live in coastal communities…The signs of mangrove recovery around the world are encouraging and restoration (both natural and artificial) is clearly needed. However, where possible, mangrove forests should be restored by reducing human pressures and allowing the system to recover naturally, rather than artificially restoring the area (e.g., by planting trees). We urgently need to transform our relationship with nature and transition to a more equitable and sustainable future in which activities that result in ecosystem loss and degradation are a thing of the past. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Into the Blue: Securing a Sustainable Future for Kelp Forests

  

  Kelp dominate approximately one quarter of the world’s coastlines, throughout polar and temperate regions, making them the most extensive marine vegetated ecosystem in the world. Kelp create complex and three-dimensional underwater forests rich in biodiversity…However, kelp have been declining globally over the past 50 years. As cool-water species, kelp are stressed by ocean warming, marine heatwaves and other climate-related extremes, with extensive losses recorded at their warm range-edges. Overfishing, reduced water quality from excess nutrients, pollution and sedimentation, and unregulated and unsustainable kelp harvesting also pose major threats to kelp forests. This global synthesis report is the most comprehensive knowledge review on kelp to date, revealing the state of science on the world’s kelp forests and providing recommended actions to build the recovery of the world’s kelp forests through increased public awareness and institutional support for advancing conservation, management and restoration. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: State of Finance for Nature 2023

  

  The State of Finance for Nature (SFN) annual report series tracks finance flows to nature-based solutions (NbS) and compares them to the finance needed to maximise the potential of NbS to help tackle climate, biodiversity and degradation challenges. For the first time, this edition estimates the scale of nature-negative finance flows from both public and private sector sources globally. The figure is daunting – almost US$7 trillion per year - and is likely to be an underestimate given it includes only direct impacts. Private finance flows that have a direct negative impact on nature are US$5 trillion, which is 140 times larger than private investments into NbS…NbS provide critical investment opportunities as they are cost-effective and provide multiple benefits…However, despite the sizeable investment potential of NbS, the single most impactful action to reduce and halt nature loss is the realignment of nature-negative finance flows. Due to their massive scale, realignment of public and private nature negative finance flows will have a very significant impact and is necessary to avoid undermining investment in NbS…In short, a major turnaround for nature is needed. Unless the real economy and financial system reduce financing of nature-negative activities (i.e. greening finance), actions to scale up investment in NbS (i.e. financing green) will be insufficient to tackle the climate, biodiversity and degradation crises. See report. Download report.

  
  

• UNEP: State of Finance for Nature in Cities 2023

  

  The State of Finance for Nature 2022 finds that a rapid doubling of finance flows to nature-based solution (NbS) can halt biodiversity loss, reduce emissions by 5 GtCO2 per year by 2025, and help restore nearly 1 billion hectares of degraded land. Policymakers are increasingly recognizing the role of cities in reaching these global environmental targets and are eager to expand funding at local level. Target 12i of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) adopted in December 2022 acknowledges the importance of the local level in mainstreaming the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity for inclusive and sustainable urbanisation. Experts agree that while exemplary programs exist to support Target 12, overall funding of urban NbS is insufficient. The SFN 2022 report estimates the annual finance gap as USD 230 billion in 2025, increasing to USD 520 billion by 2050. Urban NbS should form a significant component of this given that the Green Climate Fund asserts that “Seventy per cent of known climate solutions are located within the boundaries of subnational authorities.” National governments have become more willing to funnel sovereign funds and international loans to local governments for NbS because of their growing awareness of how NbS is a cost-effective measure to achieve global and national climate and biodiversity goals. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: Global Sustainable Development Report

  

  At the halfway point of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the world is far off track as shown in the figure which captures current status of the Sustainable Development Goals. Without urgent course correction and acceleration, humanity will face prolonged periods of crisis and uncertainty – triggered by and reinforcing poverty, inequality, hunger, disease, conflict and disaster. At a global level, the “Leave no one behind” principle is at significant risk…In 2023, the situation is much more worrisome owing to slow implementation and a confluence of crises. For Goals in which progress was too slow in 2019, countries have not accelerated enough, and for others, including food security, climate action and protecting biodiversity, the world is still moving in the wrong direction…These crises are not independent events; they are intertwined through multiple environmental, economic and social strands, each fuelling the other’s intensities. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: World Water Development Report

  

  Water use has been increasing globally by roughly 1% per year over the last 40 years and is expected to grow at a similar rate through to 2050, driven by a combination of population growth, socio-economic development and changing consumption patterns. The bulk of this increase is concentrated in middle- and lower-income countries, particularly in emerging economies. Water scarcity is becoming endemic as a result of the local impact of physical water stress, coupled with the acceleration and spreading of freshwater pollution…Co-benefits generated through ecosystem-based approaches provide a strong justification for nature-based solutions. Water utilities are mainly interested in reducing infrastructure risks, ensuring compliance and reducing costs. Climate adaptation benefits, such as flood mitigation, are particularly attractive to rural communities. Additional benefits include biodiversity conservation, and jobs and training opportunities. This diversity and scale of benefits forge strong interests among a broader scope of stakeholders and potential partners. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• USGCRP: Fifth National Climate Assessment

  

  Together with other stressors, climate change is harming the health and resilience of ecosystems, leading to reductions in biodiversity and ecosystem services. Increasing temperatures continue to shift habitat ranges as species expand into new regions or disappear from unfavorable areas, altering where people can hunt, catch, or gather economically important and traditional food sources. Degradation and extinction of local flora and fauna in vulnerable ecosystems like coral reefs and montane rainforests are expected in the near term, especially where climate changes favor invasive species or increase susceptibility to pests and pathogens. Without significant emissions reductions, rapid shifts in environmental conditions are expected to lead to irreversible ecological transformations by mid- to late century. See report. Download report.

  
  

• WEF: Global Risks Report 2023

  

  The next decade will be characterized by environmental and societal crises, driven by underlying geopolitical and economic trends. “Costof-living crisis” is ranked as the most severe global risk over the next two years, peaking in the short term. “Biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse” is viewed as one of the fastest deteriorating global risks over the next decade, and all six environmental risks feature in the top 10 risks over the next 10 years…As current crises diverts resources from risks arising over the medium to longer term, the burdens on natural ecosystems will grow given their still undervalued role in the global economy and overall planetary health. Nature loss and climate change are intrinsically interlinked – a failure in one sphere will cascade into the other. Without significant policy change or investment, the interplay between climate change impacts, biodiversity loss, food security and natural resource consumption will accelerate ecosystem collapse, threaten food supplies and livelihoods in climate-vulnerable economies, amplify the impacts of natural disasters, and limit further progress on climate mitigation. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Bank: Detox Development

  

  Detox Development: Repurposing Environmentally Harmful Subsidies examines how subsidy reform can help safeguard the world’s foundational natural assets—clean air, land, and oceans. These assets are critical for human health and nutrition and underpin much of the global economy. But subsidies for fossil fuels, agriculture, and fisheries are driving the degradation of these assets and harming people, the planet, and economies. These subsidies exceed US$7 trillion per year—or about 8 percent of global gross domestic product. This includes both explicit subsidies—which are direct public expenditures totaling about US$1.25 trillion—and implicit subsidies—which measure the societal impacts of externalities and amount to more than US$6 trillion. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Bank: Nature’s Frontiers

  

  The great expansion of economic activity since the end of World War II has caused an unprecedented rise in living standards, but it has also caused rapid changes in earth systems. Nearly all types of natural capital—the world’s stock of resources and services provided by nature—are in decline. Clean air, abundant and clean water, fertile soils, productive fisheries, dense forests, and healthy oceans are critical for healthy lives and healthy economies. Mounting pressures, however, suggest that the trend of declining natural capital may cast a long shadow into the future…Significant efficiency gaps exist in the use of land in countries at all income levels and in all regions…More efficient use of land could sequester an additional 85.6 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent with no adverse economic impacts…Better allocation and management of land, water, and other inputs could lead to increases in agriculture, grazing, and forestry annual income by approximately US$329 billion—and enough food production increases to feed the world until 2050—without net loss of forests and natural habitats. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2022

• BLI: State of the World’s Birds 2022

  

  Being widely distributed, relatively easy to survey, and responsive to environmental change, birds are useful biodiversity indicators, revealing wider trends in natural ecosystems…One in eight bird species is threatened with extinction, and the status of the world’s birds continues to deteriorate: species are moving ever faster towards extinction. For those not yet considered threatened, the majority are in decline and have much-depleted populations. The pressures causing these losses of our natural heritage are well understood, and the vast majority are driven by human actions. The principal threats include: agricultural expansion and intensification, unsustainable logging, invasive alien species, overexploitation and climate change…Most species are impacted by combinations of these threats, and some threats exacerbate others. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of the World’s Forests

  

  Environmental deterioration is contributing to climate change, biodiversity loss and the emergence of new diseases. Forests and trees can play crucial roles in addressing these crises and moving towards sustainable economies. Three interrelated pathways involving forests and trees can support economic and environmental recovery. These are (1) halting deforestation and maintaining forests; (2) restoring degraded lands and expanding agroforestry; and (3) sustainably using forests and building green value chains. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture

  

  Fishery resources continue to decline due to overfishing, pollution, poor management and other factors, but the number of landings from biologically sustainable stocks is on the rise…Effective fisheries management has been proven to successfully rebuild stocks and increase catches within ecosystem boundaries. Improving global fisheries management remains crucial to restore ecosystems to a healthy and productive state and protect the long-term supply of aquatic foods…Aquatic animal production is forecast to grow another 14 percent by 2030. It is vital this growth goes hand in hand with safeguarding ecosystems, reducing pollution, protecting biodiversity and ensuring social equity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES: Assessment Report on Diverse Values and Valuation of Nature

  

  The way nature is valued in political and economic decisions is both a key driver of the global biodiversity crisis and a vital opportunity to address it…Economic and political decisions have predominantly prioritised certain values of nature, particularly market-based instrumental values of nature, such as those associated with food produced intensively. Although often privileged in policymaking, these market values do not adequately reflect how changes in nature affect people’s quality of life. Furthermore, policymaking overlooks the many non-market values associated with nature’s contributions to people, such as climate regulation and cultural identity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES: Assessment Report on the Sustainable Use of Wild Species

  

  The use of wild species is widespread and occurs across almost all aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, in subsistence to global economies, and is embedded in local and global systems, including for food, medicine, hygiene, energy and many other uses. Addressing the causes of unsustainable use and promoting and ensuring the sustainable use of wild species are critical for people and to address biodiversity decline…The sustainable use of wild species will benefit from a transformative change in the prevailing conceptualization of nature, shifting from the human-nature dualism deeply rooted in many (but not all) cultures, to a more systemic view that humanity is part of nature. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPCC: Sixth Assessment Part 2: Climate Change - Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability

  

  This report recognizes the interdependence of climate, ecosystems and biodiversity, and human societies and integrates knowledge more strongly across the natural, ecological, social and economic sciences than earlier IPCC assessments. The assessment of climate change impacts and risks as well as adaptation is set against concurrently unfolding non-climatic global trends e.g., biodiversity loss, overall unsustainable consumption of natural resources, land and ecosystem degradation, rapid urbanisation, human demographic shifts, social and economic inequalities and a pandemic. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IUCN: Restoration Barometer

  

  The creation of a nature-positive world by 2030, which benefits planet and people, is not possible without the widespread restoration of ecosystems. Healthy ecosystems not only maintain ecological integrity and support biodiversity, but also protect human health, provide clean air, water and food, help combat poverty and act as natural defences again extreme weather. There is no choice but to incorporate ecosystem restoration into national and international targets and to ensure its rapid, and sustained, implementation. But, to generate and maintain the high levels of ambition required to achieve targets, it is vital that people know what, how and where actions are being implemented. While setting targets is the first step in the restoration journey, restoration cannot be an overnight success: to ensure restoration efforts last over time requires sufficient preparatory planning, capacity building and long-term commitment from numerous actors. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Stockholm Environment Institute: A Comprehensive Approach to Nitrogen in the UK

  

  Since the 1960s, human use of synthetic Nr fertilizers has increased 9-fold globally and a further substantial increase of around 40-50% is expected over the next 40 years based on current trends. Together with increased fossil fuel combustion, humans have now created excess Nr pollution that spans all environmental compartments with multiple threats, to the extent that the disruption of the natural nitrogen cycle is now one of the greatest global threats to the environment of the 21st century. Key N threats include: reductions in biodiversity (i.e. degradation of sensitive habitats); accelerated climate change via the production of nitrous oxide gas (N2O); widespread air pollution leading to growing incidences of upper respiratory disease and cancer in humans; depletion of stratospheric ozone layer via the production of nitrous oxide gas (N2O); eutrophication of aquatic ecosystems and hypoxic “dead zones” in the coastal ocean; and acidification of soils and forests of natural ecosystems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNCCD: Global Land Outlook 2

  

  Land resources – soil, water, and biodiversity – provide the foundation for the wealth of our societies and economies. They meet the growing needs and desires for food, water, fuel, and other raw materials that shape our livelihoods and lifestyles. However, the way we currently manage and use these natural resources is threatening the health and continued survival of many species on Earth, including our own. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Sports for Nature

  

  Our planet is out of breath as a result of our unsustainable consumption and production patterns – fueling the fires of biodiversity loss, pollution and climate change. Urgent action to conserve and restore the environment is needed, providing a healthier climate for people and planet. Outdoor sport connects us with the health of our bodies as well as that of our natural world– from the air we breathe, to the climate we train in; from the landscape we move through, to the quality of food we use to fuel our bodies. Sport is both deeply dependent and connected to nature – and thus it brings us together by reminding us that everyone has a role to play in contributing to a playing field that is in harmony with nature. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: State of Finance for Nature 2022

  

  With sufficient finance, nature-based solutions (NbS) provide the means to cost-effectively reach climate, biodiversity and land degradation neutrality targets, particularly if investments simultaneously contribute to biodiversity, climate and restoration targets. This “double” or “triple” win potential is particularly alluring given the current economic situation…Delayed action is no longer an option in the face of the devastating effects of climate change, the extinction crisis and severe land degradation globally. Politicians, business and finance leaders and citizens globally must transform their relationship with nature to work with it rather than against it…Private sector investment in NbS must increase by several orders of magnitude in the coming years…Nature-negative expenditures far outweigh investments in nature-based solutions…It is critical to rapidly align policies, regulation, economic activity and financial flows with biodiversity values and with the Paris Agreement. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Wildlife Fund: Living Planet Report

  

  Today we face the double, interlinked emergencies of human-induced climate change and the loss of biodiversity, threatening the well-being of current and future generations. As our future is critically dependent on biodiversity and a stable climate, it is essential that we understand how nature’s decline and climate change are connected…Land-use change is still the biggest current threat to nature, destroying or fragmenting the natural habitats of many plant and animal species on land, in freshwater and in the sea. However, if we are unable to limit warming to 1.5°C, climate change is likely to become the dominant cause of biodiversity loss in the coming decades. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2021

• BCG: Biodiversity Crisis is a Business Crisis

  

  Two facts about biodiversity are not up for debate. The first is widely known, the second less so. Fact number one: biodiversity —the level of diversity in the natural world, at the ecosystem, species, and genetic levels—is being destroyed at an alarming rate…Fact number two: biodiversity loss has massive implications for business. Although climate change has been at the top of the global business agenda for years, the threat that the biodiversity crisis poses is only now coming into full view. More than half of the world’s GDP depends heavily on functioning natural ecosystems, according to the WEF. As those ecosystems decline, business faces significant risks. Food and fashion makers may face higher costs for raw material inputs due to degraded soils and the loss of natural pollinators. Flooding, soil erosion, or pandemics will impact nearly every corner of the corporate world. And any company that contributes to the biodiversity crisis may lose the support of consumers and investors alike. But the crisis also creates real opportunity. Companies that act to support biodiversity can develop powerful new offerings and business models, improve the attractiveness of existing offerings, and lower operating costs. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• BGCI: The State of Trees Report

  

  Trees are also highly significant components of biodiversity and carbon storage in many other ecosystems such as woodlands, grasslands, as well as artificial and urban environments. The interlinked biodiversity crisis and challenge of global climate change cannot be addressed without informed management of tree species…We now know that 30% of tree species are threatened with extinction, and at least 142 tree species are recorded as extinct in the wild. The main threats to tree species are forest clearance and other forms of habitat loss, direct exploitation for timber and other products and the spread of invasive pests and diseases. Climate change is also having a clearly measurable impact. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• GCRMN: Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2020

  

  At a global scale, where they occupy less than 0.2% of the seabed, it is quite remarkable that coral reefs provide a habitat for close to 30% of all known marine species…Coral reefs count among the world’s most precious resources. Found throughout the world’s oceans, in more than 100 countries, these natural treasures, unique in their diversity and productivity, have enormous ecological, economic and cultural value. The services reefs deliver are fundamental for assuring the safety, nutrition, economic security, health and wellbeing of many millions of people…Despite that recognition - and the substantial effort committed since then by governments, UN agencies, research institutes, ICRI and other organisations to reef protection and management - the outlook for the world’s reefs, in 2021, is bleak. The need for action to address reef degradation has moved from “high priority” to “urgent” to “critical”. Reefs are at crisis point, linked to the impacts of our changing climate. Estimates and predictions of reef loss and degradation now and in the future vary. Some scientists assess that more than a fifth of the world’s coral reefs have already been lost or severely damaged. Others maintain the figure is closer to half - that over 50% of the world’s coral reefs have died in the last 30 years. Some suggest that by 2070, coral reefs could be gone altogether. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES and IPCC Co-Sponsored Workshop Report

  

  Climate change and biodiversity loss are closely interconnected and share common drivers through human activities. Both have predominantly negative impacts on human well-being and quality of life…Ignoring the inseparable nature of climate, biodiversity, and human quality of life will result in non-optimal solutions to either crisis…Cross-cutting issues, intersectoral policies and regulatory frameworks are areas where strong synergies could contribute to the transformative societal change that is needed to achieve ambitious goals for biodiversity, climate mitigation and good quality of life…but achieving this transformative change depends on rapid and far-reaching actions of a kind and scale never before attempted. Visit source and read quotes. View report.

  
  

• IPCC: Sixth Assessment Part 1: Climate Change - The Physical Science Basis

  

  It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land. Widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphere and biosphere have occurred. Observed increases in well-mixed greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations since around 1750 are unequivocally caused by human activities. Since 2011 (measurements reported in AR5), concentrations have continued to increase in the atmosphere, reaching annual averages of 410 parts per million (ppm) for carbon dioxide (CO2), 1866 parts per billion (ppb) for methane (CH4), and 332 ppb for nitrous oxide (N2O) in 2019. Land and ocean have taken up a near-constant proportion (globally about 56% per year) of CO2 emissions from human activities over the past six decades, with regional differences. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IUCN Red List Quadrennial Report 2017–2020

  

  The IUCN Red List is the acknowledged authority on species extinction risk and an authoritative compendium of information on the global conservation status of species. The IUCN Red List tracks and measures the status and trends in wild species across the globe. Assessments of all major species groups such as plants, fungi, invertebrates, reptiles, and fish, continue to expand in number and scope. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species expanded its coverage of the world’s biodiversity by 51% between 2017 and 2020. The IUCN Red List includes 128,918 species of which 35,765 (28%) are threatened with extinction. Certain groups are known to be considerably threatened, such as amphibians (41%), sharks (31%) and corals (33%) with increased extinction risks observed since 1990. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IUCN: Using ecosystem risk assessment science for ecosystem restoration

  

  Ecosystems form a core component of biodiversity. They provide humans with multiple benefits – a stable climate and breathable air; water, food and materials; and protection from disaster and disease. Ecosystem restoration, as defined by the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, includes a range of management interventions that aim to reduce impacts on and assist in the recovery of ecosystems that have been damaged, degraded or destroyed. However, restoration projects and programmes are often implemented without strategic evaluation of the degree of urgency for restoration among ecosystem types. As we expand our ambitions for restoration over the coming decade, and move to the restoration of entire ecosystems, landscapes and seascapes, the complexity of the questions we need to answer increases accordingly. This guide was developed to promote the application of the science of ecosystem risk assessment, which involves measuring the risk of ecosystem collapse, in ecosystem restoration. It explores how the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems and ecosystem restoration can be jointly deployed to reduce risk of ecosystem collapse. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Protected Planet Report 2020

  

  We are entering an era of unparalleled opportunity to address the global crisis facing nature. The Protected Planet Report 2020 delivers the final report on progress achieved against Aichi Target 11. When the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity adopted Target 11 in 2010, they acknowledged that effective and equitable systems of protected areas are an essential tool to address the biodiversity crisis. They also made the important decision to recognise ‘other effective area-based conservation measures’ (OECMs) for the first time…Despite being limited to only five countries and territories, the available data on OECMs already show that they make a significant contribution to coverage and connectivity. Of the area now covered by protected areas and OECMs, 42% was added in the past decade. Although the data available at the time of publication show only 16.64% coverage of terrestrial and inland water areas by protected areas and OECMs, it is clear that with further updates the 17% coverage target will be surpassed, especially as more OECMs are identified, mapped, and reported. Visit source.

  
  

• Ramsar: Global Wetland Outlook Special Edition 2021

  

  Ecosystem degradation and careless wildlife trade both increase the risks of pandemics, with up to three quarters of new diseases being zoonotic in origin. Meanwhile, water-borne diseases ‘like infant diarrhoea’ are increased by poor wetland management and cause millions of deaths every year. Control of emergent zoonotic diseases is increasingly seen as dependent on maintenance of well-managed, intact ecosystems and native biodiversity. Deterioration of wetlands is widespread, but more wetlands are still reported as in ‘good’ rather than ‘bad’ ecological character. Biodiversity losses are linked to land-use change and still rising. Wetlands are particularly impacted by sea-level rise, coral bleaching and changing hydrology, with Arctic and montane wetlands especially at risk. Wetlands need to be part of delivering climate solutions. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• The Economics of Biodiversity: The Dasgupta Review

  

  We are facing a global crisis. We are totally dependent upon the natural world. It supplies us with every oxygen-laden breath we take and every mouthful of food we eat. But we are currently damaging it so profoundly that many of its natural systems are now on the verge of breakdown…Nature is more than a mere economic good. Nature nurtures and nourishes us, so we will think of assets as durable entities that not only have use value, but may also have intrinsic worth. Once we make that extension, the economics of biodiversity becomes a study in portfolio management…But in addition to mobility, Nature has two properties that make the economics of biodiversity markedly different from the economics that informs our intuitions about the character of produced capital. Many of the processes that shape our natural world are silent and invisible. Visit source and read quotes. View report.

  
  

• UN: System of Environmental-Economic Accounting— Ecosystem Accounting

  

  It is well established that healthy ecosystems and biodiversity are fundamental to supporting and sustaining our wellbeing, our communities and our economies. However, our environment is under pressure and there are consequential risks that we face in securing and improving our livelihoods. These challenges have been recognised at local, national and global levels…In addition, there has been growing recognition that the degradation of nature is not purely an environmental issue requiring environmental policy responses; economic and social policy responses are also required. Thus, decision makers across all sectors need to consider their environmental context and the associated dependencies and impacts. Consequently, establishing agreed and ongoing measurement of changes in the state of the environment and the relationship to economic and other human activity is central to ensuring that ecosystems and biodiversity are mainstreamed in decision-making processes, including those concerning our economic and financial systems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Becoming #GenerationRestoration: Ecosystem restoration for people, nature and climate

  

  The world is facing severe challenges. Billions of people around the world are suffering the consequences of the climate emergency, food and water insecurity, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Ecosystems are an indispensable ally as we meet these challenges. Protecting them and managing their resources in a sustainable manner is essential. But just increasing the protection and sustainable management of our remaining natural landscapes and oceans will not be enough: the planet’s degraded ecosystems and the huge benefits that they provide must also be restored. By declaring the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, governments have recognized the need to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems worldwide for the benefit of both people and nature. The 2021–2030 timeline underlines the urgency of the task. Without a powerful 10-year drive for restoration, we can neither achieve the climate targets of the Paris Agreement, nor the Sustainable Development Goals. This report presents the case for why we all must throw our weight behind a global restoration effort. Drawing on the latest scientific evidence, it explains the crucial role played by ecosystems from forests and farmland to rivers and oceans, and charts the losses that result from our poor stewardship of the planet. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: From Pollution to Solution: A global assessment of marine litter and plastic pollution

  

  The amount of marine litter and plastic pollution has been growing rapidly. Emissions of plastic waste into aquatic ecosystems are projected to nearly triple by 2040 without meaningful action. Marine litter and plastics present a serious threat to all marine life, while also influencing the climate. Plastics are the largest, most harmful and most persistent fraction of marine litter, accounting for at least 85 per cent of total marine waste…Plastics can also alter global carbon cycling through their effect on plankton and primary production in marine, freshwater and terrestrial systems. Marine ecosystems, especially mangroves, seagrasses, corals and salt marshes, play a major role in sequestering carbon. The more damage we do to oceans and coastal areas, the harder it is for these ecosystems to both offset and remain resilient to climate change. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Making Peace with Nature

  

  Humanity’s environmental challenges have grown in number and severity ever since the Stockholm Conference in 1972 and now represent a planetary emergency…Over the last 50 years, the global economy has grown nearly fivefold, due largely to a tripling in extraction of natural resources and energy that has fuelled growth in production and consumption. The world population has increased by a factor of two, to 7.8 billion people, and though on average prosperity has also doubled, about 1.3 billion people remain poor and some 700 million are hungry. The increasingly unequal and resource-intensive model of development drives environmental decline through climate change, biodiversity loss and other forms of pollution and resource degradation. Visit source and read quotes. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: State of Finance for Nature

  

  Nature loss is at the heart of many societal challenges, while nature-based solutions hold the potential to address interlinked crises…The integrity of the Earth’s ecosystems has been significantly compromised as a result of human activity and the paradigm that has prioritised short-term economic growth…The report finds that approximately USD 133 billion/year currently flows into NbS (using 2020 as base year), with public funds making up 86 per cent and private finance 14 per cent…Looking to the future, investment in NbS ought to at least triple in real terms by 2030 and increase four-fold by 2050 if the world is to meet its climate change, biodiversity and land degradation targets. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Bank: The Economic Case for Nature

  

  The global decline of biodiversity and ecosystem services is a development issue: Economies, particularly in low-income countries, cannot afford the risk of collapse in the services provided by nature. The analysis in this report, the first-of-its-kind, shows that by a conservative estimate a collapse in select services such as wild pollination, provision of food from marine fisheries and timber from native forests, could result in a significant decline in global GDP: $2.7 trillion in 2030. Relative impacts are most pronounced in low-income and lower-middle-income countries, where drops in 2030 GDP may be more than 10 percent…Nature-smart policies can reduce the risk of ecosystem collapse and are “win-win” policies in terms of biodiversity and economic outcomes…The nature and climate change agendas are complementary and there are synergies to be exploited to foster green, resilient, and inclusive development. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2020

• Annual Reviews: The State of the World’s Insects

  

  Insects are an important source of both ecosystem services and ecosystem disservices. Recent studies have indicated a worrying decline in insect species, especially in flying insects in the northern temperate region, and this has spawned much media attention. Some decline has occurred, it is clear, due to agricultural intensification, urbanization, overuse of pesticides, and global climate change. A decline would seriously affect the ecosystem services that insects provide. However, there is too little data to warrant the belief that all insects are declining everywhere. There is a pressing need for more basic research on insect diversity in the context of a changing world. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• CBD: Global Biodiversity Outlook 5

  

  Humanity stands at a crossroads with regard to the legacy it leaves to future generations. Biodiversity is declining at an unprecedented rate, and the pressures driving this decline are intensifying. None of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets will be fully met, in turn threatening the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and undermining efforts to address climate change…Solutions need to seek an integrated approach that simultaneously address the conservation of the planet’s genetic diversity, species and ecosystems, the capacity of nature to deliver material benefits to human societies, and the less tangible but highly-valued connections with nature that help to define our identities, cultures and beliefs. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• EEA: Carbon stocks and sequestration in terrestrial and marine ecosystems

  

  Carbon storage in ecosystems is in the spotlight of environmental policy because of possible mitigating effects on climate change. Carbon uptake by ecosystems may lower atmospheric CO2 concentrations…Nevertheless, scientific uncertainties surrounding quantitative estimates of carbon storage within many ecosystems remain high. Measures that stimulate carbon storage may have trade-offs to other ecosystem services. Values of biodiversity and ecosystem services have to be taken into account when measures are taken to store carbon in ecosystems…Both biodiversity and climate are under pressure. Partly these pressures are similar and some measures and solutions to improve one are also beneficial for the other. Wetlands and forest are two important terrestrial ecosystems for the carbon stocks and carbon sequestration rates because of the large areas covered by these ecosystems…It is also clear, however, that there may be cases where trade-offs occur between nature conservation and restoration objectives and climate mitigation actions. These will need to be carefully weighted to make sure that climate mitigation policy and related actions will not (or at least minimize) negatively impact nature conservation and restoration objectives, or the other way around. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture

  

  The 2020 edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture continues to demonstrate the significant and growing role of fisheries and aquaculture in providing food, nutrition and employment. It also shows the major challenges ahead despite the progress made on a number of fronts. For example, there is growing evidence that when fisheries are properly managed, stocks are consistently above target levels or rebuilding, giving credibility to the fishery managers and governments around the world that are willing to take strong action. However, the report also demonstrates that the successes achieved in some countries and regions have not been sufficient to reverse the global trend of overfished stocks, indicating that in places where fisheries management is not in place, or is ineffective, the status of fish stocks is poor and deteriorating. This unequal progress highlights the urgent need to replicate and re-adapt successful policies and measures in the light of the realities and needs of specific fisheries. It calls for new mechanisms to support the effective implementation of policy and management reg ulations for sustainable fisheries and ecosystems, as the only solution to ensure fisheries around the world are sustainable. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of the World’s Forests

  

  Forests harbour most of Earth’s terrestrial biodiversity. The conservation of the world’s biodiversity is thus utterly dependent on the way in which we interact with and use the world’s forests…Forests cover 31 percent of the global land area but are not equally distributed around the globe. Almost half the forest area is relatively intact, and more than one-third is primary forest. More than half of the world’s forests are found in only five countries (Brazil, Canada, China, Russian Federation and United States of America)…Deforestation and forest degradation continue to take place at alarming rates, which contributes significantly to the ongoing loss of biodiversity. Since 1990, it is estimated that some 420 million hectares of forest have been lost through conversion to other land uses, although the rate of deforestation has decreased over the past three decades…Agricultural expansion continues to be the main driver of deforestation and forest fragmentation and the associated loss of forest biodiversity…Progress on preventing the extinction of known threatened species and improving their conservation status has been slow. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES Workshop Report on Biodiversity and Pandemics

  

  Pandemics have their origins in diverse microbes carried by animal reservoirs, but their emergence is entirely driven by human activities. The underlying causes of pandemics are the same global environmental changes that drive biodiversity loss and climate change. These include land-use change, agricultural expansion and intensification, and wildlife trade and consumption…Our business-as-usual approach to pandemics is based on containment and control after a disease has emerged and relies primarily on reductionist approaches to vaccine and therapeutic development rather than on reducing the drivers of pandemic risk to prevent them before they emerge. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IUCN: Global Ecosystem Typology 2.0

  

  Ecosystems are critically important components of Earth’s biological diversity and as the natural capital that sustains human life and well-being. Yet all of the world’s ecosystems show hallmarks of human influence, and many are under acute risks of collapse, with consequences for habitats of species, genetic diversity, ecosystem services, sustainable development and human well-being. A systematic typology that encompasses all of Earth’s ecosystems, representing the diversity of both ecosystem function and biodiversity, is essential for marshalling knowledge to inform effective action to sustain this critical natural capital. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Kew: State of the World’s Plants and Fungi

  

  Never before has the biosphere, the thin layer of life we call home, been under such intensive and urgent threat. Deforestation rates have soared as we have cleared land to feed ever-more people, global emissions are disrupting the climate system, new pathogens threaten our crops and our health, illegal trade has eradicated entire plant populations, and non-native species are outcompeting local floras. Biodiversity is being lost – locally, regionally and globally. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• OECD: A Comprehensive Overview of Global Biodiversity Finance

  

  Based on currently available data, global biodiversity finance is estimated at USD 78 - 91 billion per year (2015-2017 average). Meanwhile, governments spend approximately USD 500 billion per year in support that is potentially harmful to biodiversity i.e. five to six times more than total spending for biodiversity. The total volume of finance flows that are harmful to biodiversity (i.e. encompassing all public and private expenditure) is likely to be many times larger. Various initiatives are underway to improve the assessment, tracking and reporting of biodiversity finance flows. Nevertheless, data gaps and inconsistencies persist. To address this challenge, the report provides five key recommendations. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Pew Charitable Trusts: Breaking the Plastic Wave

  

  We estimate that 11 million metric tons of plastic entered the ocean from land in 2016, adding to the estimated 150 million metric tons of plastic already in the ocean. Plastic flows into the ocean are projected to nearly triple by 2040 to 29 million metric tons per year. Even worse, because plastic remains in the ocean for hundreds of years, or longer, and may never biodegrade, the cumulative amount of plastic stock in the ocean could grow by 450 million metric tons in the next 20 years— with severe impacts on biodiversity, and ocean and human health…From coral reefs to deep sea trenches and from remote islands to the poles, plastic alters habitats, harms wildlife, and can damage ecosystem function and services. More than 800 species are already known to be affected by marine plastic pollution, including all sea turtle species, more than 40 per cent of cetacean species, and 44 per cent of marine bird species. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Out of the Blue: The Value of Seagrasses to the Environment and to People

  

  Seagrasses are marine flowering plants that are found in shallow waters in many parts of the world, from the tropics to the Arctic circle. They exist in 159 countries on six continents, covering over 300,000 km2, making them one of the most widespread coastal habitats on Earth. Seagrasses form extensive underwater meadows, creating complex, highly productive and biologically rich habitats. Seagrasses also play a significant role in providing a plethora of highly valuable ecosystem services that greatly contribute to the health of the world’s ecosystems, human well-being and the security of coastal communities…However, seagrasses have been declining globally since the 1930s, with the most recent census estimating that 7 percent of this key marine habitat is being lost worldwide per year, which is equivalent to a football field of seagrass lost every 30 minutes. Only 26 per cent of recorded seagrass meadows fall within marine protected areas (MPAs) compared with 40 per cent of coral reefs and 43 per cent of mangroves. Threats with the highest impact to seagrasses include agricultural and industrial run-off, coastal development and climate change. Unregulated fishing activities, anchoring, trampling and dredging also pose major threats. However, despite a general global trend of seagrass loss, there is reason for hope, as some areas have shown abating declines or substantial recovery of seagrasses. These recoveries can often be attributed to human interventions reducing the effect of human-caused stressors. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Wildlife Fund: Living Planet Report

  

  The global Living Planet Index continues to decline. It shows an average 68% decrease in population sizes of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish between 1970 and 2016. A 94% decline in the LPI for the tropical subregions of the Americas is the largest fall observed in any part of the world. Why does this matter? It matters because biodiversity is fundamental to human life on Earth, and the evidence is unequivocal – it is being destroyed by us at a rate unprecedented in history. Since the industrial revolution, human activities have increasingly destroyed and degraded forests, grasslands, wetlands and other important ecosystems, threatening human well-being. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2010 - 2019

2019

• FAO: The State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture

  

  Many key components of biodiversity for food and agriculture at genetic, species and ecosystem levels are in decline. Evidence suggests that the proportion of livestock breeds at risk of extinction is increasing, and that, for some crops and in some areas, plant diversity in farmers’ fields is decreasing and threats to diversity are increasing. Nearly a third of fish stocks are overfished and a third of freshwater fish species assessed are considered threatened. Countries report that many species that contribute to vital ecosystem services, including pollinators, natural enemies of pests, soil organisms and wild food species, are in decline as a consequence of the destruction and degradation of habitats, overexploitation, pollution and other threats. Key ecosystems that deliver numerous services essential to food and agriculture, including supply of freshwater, protection against hazards and provision of habitat for species such as fish and pollinators, are declining rapidly. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES Global Assessment on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

  

  Nature and its vital contributions to people, which together embody biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, are deteriorating worldwide…Nature across most of the globe has now been significantly altered by multiple human drivers, with the great majority of indicators of ecosystems and biodiversity showing rapid decline…The rate of global change in nature during the past 50 years is unprecedented in human history…An average of around 25 per cent of species in assessed animal and plant groups are threatened, suggesting that around 1 million species already face extinction, many within decades, unless action is taken to reduce the intensity of drivers of biodiversity loss. Without such action, there will be a further acceleration in the global rate of species extinction, which is already at least tens to hundreds of times higher than it has averaged over the past 10 million years. Visit source and read quotes. View report.

  
  

• IPCC: Special Report Climate Change and Land

  

  Land provides the principal basis for human livelihoods and well-being including the supply of food, freshwater and multiple other ecosystem services, as well as biodiversity. Human use directly affects more than 70% (likely 69–76%) of the global, ice-free land surface. Land also plays an important role in the climate system…Data available since 1961 show that global population growth and changes in per capita consumption of food, feed, fibre, timber and energy have caused unprecedented rates of land and freshwater use with agriculture currently accounting for ca. 70% of global fresh-water use…About a quarter of the Earth’s ice-free land area is subject to human-induced degradation. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• OECD: Biodiversity: Finance and the Business and Economic Case for Action

  

  There exists a strong business case for scaling up action on biodiversity. Business impacts and dependencies on biodiversity translate into risks to business and financial organisations, including ecological risks to operations; liability risks; and regulatory, reputational, market and financial risks. Acknowledging and measuring these dependencies and impacts on biodiversity can help businesses and financial organisations manage and prevent biodiversity-related risks, while harnessing new business opportunities. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: Global Sustainable Development Report

  

  Since the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, there have been many positive developments. Countries have started to incorporate the Goals into national plans and strategies, and many have set up coordinating structures for coherent implementation…However, despite the initial efforts, the world is not on track for achieving most of the 169 targets that comprise the Goals. The limited success in progress towards the Goals raises strong concerns and sounds the alarm for the international community. Much more needs to happen – and quickly – to bring about the transformative changes that are required: impeding policies should urgently be reversed or modified, and recent advances that holistically promote the Goals should be scaled up in an accelerated fashion. Adding to the concern is the fact that recent trends along several dimensions with cross-cutting impacts across the entire 2030 Agenda are not even moving in the right direction. Four in particular fall into that category: rising inequalities, climate change, biodiversity loss and increasing amounts of waste from human activity that are overwhelming capacities to process them. Critically, recent analysis suggests that some of those negative trends presage a move towards the crossing of negative tipping points, which would lead to dramatic changes in the conditions of the Earth system in ways that are irreversible on time scales meaningful for society. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Frontiers 2018/19: Emerging Issues of Environmental Concern

  

  The world is facing unprecedented challenges to a healthy and sustainable future. Habitat destruction, invasive species, and overexploitation are contributing to immense biodiversity loss. Unsustainable, extractive industry practices further burden the environment, and by extension, human welfare. Vector-borne infectious diseases pose a major threat to global health. Rapid climate change is likely to expand the geographical range of tropical diseases and further stress already taxed species and ecosystems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Global Environment Outlook 6

  

  Urgent action at an unprecedented scale is necessary to arrest and reverse this situation, thereby protecting human and environmental health and maintaining the current and future integrity of global ecosystems. Key actions include reducing land degradation, biodiversity loss, and air, land and water pollution; improving water management and resource management; climate change mitigation and adaptation; resource efficiency; addressing decarbonization, decoupling and detoxification; and the prevention and management of risk and disasters. Those all require more ambitious and effective policies, including sustainable consumption and production, greater resource efficiency and improved resource management, integrated ecosystem management, and integrated waste management and prevention. Mainstreaming environmental considerations into social and economic decisions at all levels is of vital importance. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WWF and IUCN: Tangled roots and changing tides

  

  Despite the plethora of applicable laws, mangroves continue to deteriorate rapidly, driven by urbanization, population growth and unsustainable development. Mangroves are cleared for conversion of land for shrimp production and rice farming and other forms of aquaculture and agriculture. Their unique wood quality makes them a favoured construction material for houses and boats. Mangrove wood is also used for charcoal and firewood to meet energy needs of growing cities and local communities. Coastal infrastructure development, salt mining, oil exploration and tourism can all drive destruction and pollution of mangroves. Upstream diversion and pollution of watersources from agricultural and urban sources contribute to degradation of mangroves downstream. Existing legal tools are failing to address these and other threats leading to a global decline in mangrove health and coverage. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2018

• FAO: The State of the World’s Forests

  

  Forests and trees make vital contributions both to people and the planet, bolstering livelihoods, providing clean air and water, conserving biodiversity and responding to climate change…Deforestation, chiefly caused by the conversion of forest land to agriculture and livestock areas, threatens not only the livelihoods of foresters, forest communities and indigenous peoples, but also the variety of life on our planet. Land-use changes result in a loss of valuable habitats, land degradation, soil erosion, a decrease in clean water, and the release of carbon into the atmosphere. How to increase agricultural production and improve food security without reducing forest area is one of the great challenges of our times. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture

  

  The state of marine fishery resources, based on FAO’s monitoring of assessed marine fish stocks, has continued to decline. The fraction of marine fish stocks fished within biologically sustainable levels has exhibited a decreasing trend, from 90.0 percent in 1974 to 66.9 percent in 2015. In contrast, the percentage of stocks fished at biologically unsustainable levels increased from 10 percent in 1974 to 33.1 percent in 2015, with the largest increases in the late 1970s and 1980s. In 2015, maximally sustainably fished stocks (formerly termed fully fished stocks) accounted for 59.9 percent and underfished stocks for 7.0 percent of the total assessed stocks…The persistence of overfished stocks is an area of great concern. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES: Assessment Report on Land Degradation and Restoration

  

  Currently, degradation of the Earth’s land surface through human activities is negatively impacting the well-being of at least 3.2 billion people, pushing the planet towards a sixth mass species extinction, and costing more than 10 per cent of the annual global gross product in loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services…Unless urgent and concerted action is taken, land degradation will worsen in the face of population growth, unprecedented consumption, an increasingly globalized economy and climate change. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPCC: Special Report Global Warming of 1.5 ºC

  

  Human activities are estimated to have caused approximately 1.0°C of global warming above pre-industrial levels, with a likely range of 0.8°C to 1.2°C. Global warming is likely to reach 1.5°C between 2030 and 2052 if it continues to increase at the current rate…On land, impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems, including species loss and extinction, are projected to be lower at 1.5°C of global warming compared to 2°C. Limiting global warming to 1.5°C compared to 2°C is projected to lower the impacts on terrestrial, freshwater and coastal ecosystems and to retain more of their services to humans. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Kew: State of the World’s Fungi

  

  The realisation that fungi are closer to animals than plants is, however, only one of a number of remarkable facts to emerge in the past few decades. It is now becoming apparent that these organisms, which often cannot be seen with the naked eye and spend vast parts of their life cycle underground or inside plants and animals, are responsible for incredibly important processes; these include global cycling of nutrients, carbon sequestration, and even the prevention of desertification in some drought-prone regions of the world. Fungi also underpin products and processes that we rely heavily on in aspects of everyday life, from critical drugs (including statins, the class of medication used to lower blood cholesterol), to synthesis of biofuels, to cleaning up the environment through bioremediation. Some have multiple uses; for example, species of Penicillium have uses as diverse as in antibiotics, the synthesis of third-generation contraceptive pills and cheese production. The global market in edible mushrooms is also huge and increasing. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Protected Planet Report 2018: Tracking progress towards global targets for protected areas

  

  With two years to go until 2020, the Protected Planet Report 2018 confirms that significant progress has been made to accelerate protection of biodiversity on land and in the ocean. Based on the world’s most up to date records in the World Database on Protected Areas, managed jointly by UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, the report confirms that almost 15% of the earth’s land surface and inland waters, and just above 7% of the global ocean is now protected. However, marine areas under national jurisdiction have significantly more protection (17%) than Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, with only slightly over 1% of protection…In particular, the ecosystem services of the world’s protected areas underpin global needs to address climate change; protect water sources and food production systems; alleviate disaster risk; and maintain health, well-being and the livelihoods of millions of people. Progress is only possible if these systems are well connected and integrated into the wider landscapes and seascapes, if they are governed equitably and managed effectively, and if they stem the loss of biodiversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Ramsar: Global Wetland Outlook - State of the World’s Wetlands

  

  Healthy, functioning natural wetlands are critical to human livelihoods and sustainable development. Although still covering a global area almost as large as Greenland, wetlands are declining fast, with 35% losses since 1970, where data are available. Wetland plants and animals are therefore in crisis, with a quarter of species at risk of extinction. Quality of remaining wetlands is also suffering, due to drainage, pollution, invasive species, unsustainable use, disrupted flow regimes and climate change. Yet wetland ecosystem services, ranging from food security to climate change mitigation, are enormous, far outweighing those of terrestrial ecosystems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Inclusive Wealth 2018

  

  Economies may appear to be growing when measured using GDP, but if we look at the state of the biosphere today (fresh water, ocean fisheries, the atmosphere as a carbon sink), there is strong evidence to suggest that the rates at which we are using them are unsustainable. The rate of biological extinctions today is 100 to 1,000 times the average background rate of the past several million years. Climate change is another example of an ill that has arisen in spite of – or perhaps because of – economic growth, as measured by GDP…This is why the Inclusive Wealth Index (IWI) was born…The IWI looks at each country’s stock of assets – its manufactured, human and natural capital – and assesses the changing health of these assets over a quarter of a century, a massive data set that covers almost an entire generation…The Inclusive Wealth Report (IWR) 2018 shows that 44 out of the 140 countries have suffered a decline in inclusive wealth per capita since 1992, even though GDP per capita increased in all but a handful of them. This means that these countries are not on a path to sustainable development, even if their economies, according to GDP, appear to be growing. They are depleting their stocks of natural, human or physical capital at rates that will leave future generations worse off. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Wildlife Fund: Living Planet Report

  

  Exploding human consumption is the driving force behind the unprecedented planetary change we are witnessing, through the increased demand for energy, land and water. Consumption indicators – such as the Ecological Footprint – provide a picture of overall resource use. The products we consume, the supply chains behind them, the materials they use and how these are extracted and manufactured have myriad impacts on the world around us. While climate change is a growing threat, the main drivers of biodiversity decline continue to be the overexploitation of species, agriculture and land conversion. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2017

• Kew: State of the World’s Plants

  

  A detailed knowledge of plants is fundamental to human life on Earth. Plants underpin all aspects of our everyday life – from the food that we eat, to the clothes that we wear, the materials we use, the air we breathe, the medicines we take and much more. These essential services provided by plants are far too often taken for granted. This is the second annual report in which we have scrutinised databases, published literature, policy documents, reports and satellite imagery to provide a synthesis of current knowledge on the world’s plants. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNCCD: Global Land Outlook 1

  

  There is rapidly escalating competition between the demand for land functions that provide food, water, and energy, and those services that support and regulate all life cycles on Earth…A significant proportion of managed and natural ecosystems are degrading…Biodiversity loss and climate change further jeopardize the health and productivity of land…Land degradation decreases resilience to environmental stresses…Over 1.3 billion people are trapped on degrading agricultural land…The scale of rural transformation in recent decades has been unprecedented…whether we act as consumers, producers, corporations, or governments, a business-as-usual approach will be insufficient to address the magnitude of this challenge. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Frontiers 2017: Emerging Issues of Environmental Concern

  

  Our oceans have been under too much stress, from too many human activities, for too many years. Today, they face a complex mixture of environmental, social and economic impacts. Overfishing and other extractive activities, coastal development, pollution and tourism are damaging essential natural habitats and reducing populations of marine species at an incredible rate. This well-documented degradation is deteriorating further due to climate change, through the effects of warmer temperatures and the acidification that results when oceans absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Since 1985, we have lost half of the world’s coral reefs. In 2016 alone, a 400-mile stretch of the Great Barrier Reef was severely damaged by coral bleaching. Of the 600 fish stocks, or subpopulations, monitored by international research bodies, 31 per cent are currently fished at unsustainable levels, largely due to illegal, unreported or unregulated activities, and 58 per cent are fully exploited…In short, we are using the ocean’s resources faster than ocean ecosystems can replenish them. It is a familiar destructive pattern: once we extract too many resources, weakened ecosystems recover more slowly. When we return for more, less of the resource is available and it is more difficult to extract. So, we put in more effort and cause more damage. Eventually, the resource is exhausted—or extinct. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2016

• FAO: The State of the World’s Forests

  

  There was a net forest loss of 7 million hectares per year in tropical countries in 2000–2010 and a net gain in agricultural land of 6 million hectares per year. The greatest net loss of forests and net gain in agricultural land over the period was in the low-income group of countries, where rural populations are growing. Large-scale commercial agriculture accounts for about 40 percent of deforestation in the tropics and subtropics, local subsistence agriculture for 33 percent, infrastructure for 10 percent, urban expansion for 10 percent and mining for 7 percent…Underlying factors affecting forest conversion include population growth and changing food consumption patterns; agricultural developments, such as changing markets, technological improvements and active policy interventions; land-tenure security; and the governance of land-use change. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• FAO: The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture

  

  Many millennia after terrestrial food production shifted from hunter-gatherer activities to agriculture, aquatic food production has transitioned from being primarily based on capture of wild fish to culture of increasing numbers of farmed species. A milestone was reached in 2014 when the aquaculture sector’s contribution to the supply of fish for human consumption overtook that of wild-caught fish for the first time. Meeting the ever-growing demand for fish as food in conformity with the 2030 Agenda will be imperative, and also immensely challenging…With capture fishery production relatively static since the late 1980s, aquaculture has been responsible for the impressive growth in the supply of fish for human consumption…Growth in the global supply of fish for human consumption has outpaced population growth in the past five decades, increasing at an average annual rate of 3.2 percent in the period 1961–2013, double that of population growth, resulting in increasing average per capita availability…Thus, governance needs to ensure that fisheries and aquaculture adapt to the impacts of climate change and improve the resilience of food production systems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES Assessment Report on Pollinators, Pollination and Food Production

  

  Globally, nearly 90 per cent of wild flowering plant species depend, at least in part, on the transfer of pollen by animals. These plants are critical for the continued functioning of ecosystems as they provide food, form habitats and provide other resources for a wide range of other species…The vast majority of pollinator species are wild, including more than 20,000 species of bees, some species of flies, butterflies, moths, wasps, beetles, thrips, birds, bats and other vertebrates…Wild pollinators have declined in occurrence and diversity (and abundance for certain species) at local and regional scales in North West Europe and North America…Threats include land-use change, intensive agricultural management and pesticide use, environmental pollution, invasive alien species, pathogens and climate change. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• JRC: Global Diversity Atlas

  

  The Atlas describes soil as habitat for the diversity of organisms that live under our feet. At the same time, it draws attention to the threats to soil biodiversity, such as invasive species, pollution, intensive land use practices or climate change. The Atlas provides current solutions for a sustainable management of soils. It was coordinated by the JRC and the Global Soil Biodiversity Initiative (www.globalsoilbiodiversity.org) with more than 70 contributing organisations and several hundred individual contributions. It illustrates the diversity of soil organisms, explains their geographical and temporal distribution, the ecosystem functions and services provided by soil biota. Most importantly, it draws attention to the myriad of threats to soil biodiversity. These include inappropriate land management practices (e.g. deforestation, land take for infrastructure development), agricultural systems, over-grazing, forest fires and poor water management (both irrigation and drainage). Other practices such as land conversion from grassland or forest to cropped land result in rapid loss of soil carbon, which indirectly enhances global warming. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Kew: State of the World’s Plants

  

  This is the first document to collate current knowledge on the state of the world’s plants. A large team of researchers has reviewed published literature, scrutinised global databases and synthesised new datasets. The output presented here represents a status report on our knowledge of global vegetation as it stands in 2016, including a synthesis of existing information about vascular plants, new findings emerging from the review process, and an update on current knowledge gaps. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Protected Planet Report 2016

  

  At a time when human pressures on the world’s species and ecosystems are intensifying, there is also a growing recognition that natural ecosystems make an essential contribution to human health and wellbeing. The integration of environmental sustainability into more than half of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals clearly reflects this trend. Never has the need to conserve biodiversity and cultural heritage been greater, and more universally accepted, than today. This increased awareness has led to investments in new systems of protection around the world…The report underscores the importance of protected areas in sustaining the functions and values of natural ecosystems as well as the needs of human society. It highlights the nature-based solutions that protected areas make to critical environmental and societal challenges including climate change, food and water security, human health and well-being, and natural disasters. These functions will become ever more valuable as terrestrial, marine, coastal, and inland water ecosystems outside protected areas become compromised by over-exploitation, habitat loss and degradation. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Frontiers 2016: Emerging Issues of Environmental Concern

  

  According to the economic theory of the “tragedy of the commons”, the earth’s natural resources become overexploited when they are considered free, whereby individuals behave against to the common good. Business as usual expects government will create a suite of laws and regulations to manage the free-for-all. However, a growing number of private sector enterprises are moving ahead of government regulation because they understand their own self-interest is realized through efforts to reduce environmental damage and even to encourage tougher environmental regulation. Climate change, ecosystem degradation, water scarcity, waste management, and other environmental challenges increasingly force the private sector to consider how are damaging the environment, for example through deforestation or greenhouse gas emissions as they and their suppliers conduct business; or how they are dependent on the environment, for example by using water for agricultural production or mineral extraction and processing. These activities can expose companies to a variety of risks including market, regulatory, and reputational risks as well as the physical risks from climate-related threats. A growing number of industries and individual companies acknowledge that diminishing exposure to these material risks is in their collective self interest and requires them to reduce environmental damage. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Wildlife Fund: Living Planet Report

  

  Under the current trajectory, the future of many living organisms in the Anthropocene is uncertain; in fact several indicators give cause for alarm. The Living Planet Index, which measures biodiversity abundance levels based on 14,152 monitored populations of 3,706 vertebrate species, shows a persistent downward trend. On average, monitored species population abundance declined by 58 per cent between 1970 and 2012. Monitored species are increasingly affected by pressures from unsustainable agriculture, fisheries, mining and other human activities that contribute to habitat loss and degradation, overexploitation, climate change and pollution. In a business-as-usual scenario, this downward trend in species populations continues into the future. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2015

• FAO: Status of the World’s Soil Resources

  

  “Soils are fundamental to life on earth.” We know more about soil than ever before, yet perhaps a smaller percentage of people than at any point in human history would understand the truth of this statement. The proportion of human labour devoted to working the soil has steadily decreased through the past century, and hence the experience of direct contact with the soil has lessened in most regions. Soil is very different in this regard from food, energy, water and air, to which each of us requires constant and secure access. Yet human society as a whole depends more than ever before on products from the soil as well as on the more intangible services it provides for maintenance of the biosphere. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPBES Conceptual Framework - Connecting Nature and People

  

  The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) was established in 2012 as an independent intergovernmental body open to all member countries of the United Nations, with the goal of ‘strengthening the science-policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem services for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, long-term human well-being and sustainable development’ (http://www.ipbes.net). Developed in the wake of other international assessments, specifically the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), IPBES was designed to proactively develop assessments matched to policy needs, and to support capacity building across scales and topics. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WHO and CBD: Connecting Global Priorities: Biodiversity and Human Health

  

  The last 50 years have seen unprecedented improvements in human health, as measured by most conventional metrics. This human flourishing has, however, been at the cost of extensive degradation to the Earth’s ecological and biogeochemical systems. The impacts of transformations to these systems; including accelerating climatic disruption, land degradation, growing water scarcity, fisheries degradation, pollution, and biodiversity loss; have already begun to negatively impact human health. Left unchecked these changes threaten to reverse the global health gains of the last several decades and will likely become the dominant threat to health over the next century. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2014

• CBD: Global Biodiversity Outlook 4

  

  There has been significant progress towards meeting some components of the majority of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. Some target components, such as conserving at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas, are on track to be met. However, in most cases this progress will not be sufficient to achieve the targets set for 2020, and additional action is required to keep the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011–2020 on course. Key potential actions for accelerating progress towards each target are listed below. Extrapolations for a range of indicators suggest that based on current trends, pressures on biodiversity will continue to increase at least until 2020, and that the status of biodiversity will continue to decline. This is despite the fact that society’s responses to the loss of biodiversity are increasing dramatically, and based on national plans and commitments are expected to continue to increase for the remainder of this decade. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Protected Planet Report 2014

  

  About 209,000 protected areas (PAs) cover 15.4% of the planet’s terrestrial and inland water areas, and 3.4 % of the oceans. 8.4% of all marine areas within national jurisdiction (0-200 nautical miles) are covered protected areas while only 0.25% of marine areas beyond national jurisdiction are protected. Protected areas do not sufficiently cover areas of particular importance for biodiversity (only 22-23% are completely covered by PAs), and many terrestrial and marine ecoregions are still poorly represented. There is good evidence that effectively managed PAs conserve biodiversity and habitats, on land and sea. However, by 2013, only 29% of the area of nationally designated PAs had been assessed for Protected Area Management Effectiveness. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Inclusive Wealth 2014

  

  Over the past twenty years we have seen, it is true, enormous gains in economic activity and output, and indeed as well in many of the quality of life indicators comprising the HDI. On the other hand, serious questions have arisen as to the equitability and – more importantly – the sustainability of those gains…In the era of globalization and instant communication, such levels of inequality, both within and across nations, are unsustainable. Meanwhile, these gains have, as they have since the onset of Industrialization, come at a massive cost to ecosystem health, biodiversity, air quality, and climate resiliency…The primary objective of the 2014 Inclusive Wealth Report (IWR 2014) is to provide quantitative information and analysis on long-term trends in global inclusive wealth (IW), and in doing so paint a picture of how nations are performing in their efforts to sustainably improve the well-being of their citizens. Another objective of the report is to further drive global efforts toward improving conceptual understanding – and quantitative evaluation – of the components of inclusive wealth that remain all-too poorly understood: natural capital and human capital. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Wildlife Fund: Living Planet Report

  

  A range of indicators reflecting humanity’s heavy demand upon the planet shows that we are using nature’s gifts as if we had more than just one Earth at our disposal. By taking more from our ecosystems and natural processes than can be replenished, we are jeopardizing our future. Nature conservation and sustainable development go hand-in-hand. They are not only about preserving biodiversity and wild places, but just as much about safeguarding the future of humanity – our well-being, economy, food security and social stability – indeed, our very survival. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2012

• Protected Planet Report 2012

  

  The Protected Planet Report is a new initiative that tracks global progress towards Target 11 of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) Aichi Biodiversity Targets. Achieving this ambitious target, which calls for at least 17% of the world’s terrestrial areas and 10% of marine areas to be equitably managed and conserved by 2020, will require strong and effective partnerships: this report is an excellent example. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: Resilient people, resilient planet: a future worth choosing

  

  Today we stand at a crossroads. Continuing on the same path will put people and our planet at greatly heightened risk. The other path, we believe, provides extraordinary opportunity, but we must be committed and courageous in following it. Changing course will not be easy. But over time, we believe that following a more sustainable path will enhance human well-being, further global justice, strengthen gender equity and preserve the Earth’s life-support systems for future generations. Nearly 20 years after the Rio Earth Summit, the challenge — and opportunities — of sustainable development are more relevant than ever. Today we see with increasing clarity that economic growth, environmental protection and social equity are one and the same agenda: the sustainable development agenda. We cannot make lasting progress in one without progress on all. People are at the centre of our vision of sustainable development. Our report puts forth a series of core recommendations that, if implemented over time, will help lift large swathes of humanity out of dehumanizing poverty; bolster resilience; strengthen global equity, including gender equity; transform how we value goods and services and measure growth; preserve valuable ecosystems; enhance collaboration, coherence and accountability across sectors and institutions; and create a common framework for global sustainability. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Global Environment Outlook 5

  

  Within the Earth System – which acts as a single, self-regulating system comprised of physical, chemical, biological and human components – the effects of human activities can be detected at a planetary scale. These have led scientists to define a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene, based on evidence that atmospheric, geological, hydrological, biological and other Earth System processes are being altered by human activity. The most readily recognized changes include a rise in global temperatures and sea levels, and ocean acidification, all associated with the increase in emissions of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide and methane. Other human-induced changes include extensive deforestation and land clearance for agriculture and urbanization, causing species extinctions as natural habitats are destroyed. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Inclusive Wealth 2012

  

  As a whole, humanity has achieved unparalleled prosperity; great strides are being made to reduce global poverty; and technological advances are revolutionizing our lives, stamping out diseases, and transforming communication. That said, inequality remains stubbornly high, and is increasing in many countries. Short-term political and economic strategies are driving consumerism and debt, which, together with a growing global population — set to reach nearly nine billion by 2040 — is subjecting the natural environment to growing stress…Despite significant advances in the past 25 years, humanity has failed to conserve resources, safeguard natural ecosystems, or otherwise ensure its own long-term viability…The United Nations University’s International Human Dimensions Programme (UNU-IHDP) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), together with other partners, have been working to find these indicators for this Inclusive Wealth Report (IWR), which proposes an approach to sustainability based on measuring natural, manufactured, human, and social forms of capital. The IWR aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the different components of wealth by country; their links to economic development and human well-being; and policies that are based on social management of these assets. The IWR represents a crucial first step in transforming the global economic paradigm, by ensuring that we have the correct information with which to assess our economic development and well-being — and to reassess our needs and goals. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Wildlife Fund: Living Planet Report

  

  Within the vast immensity of the universe, a thin layer of life encircles a planet. Bound by rock below and space above, millions of diverse species thrive. Together, they form the ecosystems and habitats we so readily recognize as planet Earth – and which, in turn, supply a multitude of ecosystem services upon which people, and all life, depend. Ever-growing human demand for resources, however, is putting tremendous pressures on biodiversity. This threatens the continued provision of ecosystem services, which not only further threatens biodiversity but also our own species’ future security, health and well-being. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2011

• CBD: Global Biodiversity Outlook 3

  

  The target agreed by the world’s Governments in 2002, “to achieve by 2010 a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and national level as a contribution to poverty alleviation and to the benefit of all life on Earth”, has not been met. There are multiple indications of continuing decline in biodiversity in all three of its main components — genes, species and ecosystems. The loss of biodiversity is an issue of profound concern for its own sake. Biodiversity also underpins the functioning of ecosystems which provide a wide range of services to human societies. Its continued loss, therefore, has major implications for current and future human well-being. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity in National and International Policy Making

  

  Damage to global biodiversity is acute and accelerating. While the overarching driver is linked to pressures from steadily rising consumption and production, we make the problem worse by excluding nature’s value from our decisions - and miss opportunities for solutions. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity in National and International Policy Making provides a toolkit and a way forward. New momentum is under way to develop more balanced and accountable approaches based on nature’s values and fairer distribution of its benefits. This book presents an evidence base of experience and best practices from around the world. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2010

• CAFF: Arctic Biodiversity Trends - Selected Indicators of Change

  

  Unique Arctic habitats for flora and fauna, including sea ice, tundra, thermokarst ponds and lakes, and permafrost peatlands have been disappearing over recent decades. Although the majority of Arctic species examined in this report are currently stable or increasing, some species of importance to Arctic people or species of global significance are declining. Climate change is emerging as the most far reaching and significant stressor on Arctic biodiversity. However, contaminants, habitat fragmentation, industrial development, and unsustainable harvest levels continue to have impacts. Complex interactions between climate change and other factors have the potential to magnify impacts on biodiversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• JRC: European Atlas of Soil Biodiversity

  

  Biodiversity loss and climate change are two of the most pressing challenges of our time. Soil biodiversity is part of the solution to both. The main goal of the atlas is to inform the general public, policy makers, land managers, teachers and the general scientific community of the unique characteristics of life in soil and raise awareness of its environmental importance and global significance. Soil contains at least one quarter to one third of all living organisms on the planet yet only around 1% of soil microorganisms have been identified compared to 80% of plants. Most terrestrial ecosystem processes that sustain life on the planet (e.g. soil fertility, nutrient cycles, greenhouse gas fluxes, pollution control, antibiotics) are in fact all driven by soil biology. However, life within the soil is complex to observe (i.e. small scale and mostly hidden away) and suffers greatly by being ‘out of sight and out of mind’. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Dead Planet, Living Planet: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Restoration for Sustainable Development

  

  Biodiversity and ecosystems deliver crucial services to humankind – from food security to keeping our waters clean, buffering against extreme weather, providing medicines to recreation and adding to the foundation of human culture. Together these services have been estimated to be worth over 21–72 trillion USD every year – comparable to the World Gross National Income of 58 trillion USD in 2008. Human society is however living well beyond the carrying capacity of the planet and currently over 60% of ecosystem services and their biodiversity are degrading, compromising sustainability, well being, health and security. Visit source. View report.

  
  

2000 - 2009

2005 - 2009

• UNEP: Review of the literature on the links between biodiversity and climate change (2009)

  

  Climate change adds to the global challenge of biodiversity conservation. There is ample scientific evidence that climate change affects biodiversity. It is threatening individual species as well as entire ecosystems, with negative consequences for human well-being. However, the links between biodiversity and climate change flow both ways. Biodiversity, through the ecosystem services it supports, makes an important contribution to both climate change mitigation and adaptation. The interlinkages between biodiversity, climate change, and sustainable development, have been recognized within both the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), as well as other international fora. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: The linkages between biodiversity and climate change mitigation: A review of the recent scientific literature (2008)

  

  Research since IPCC AR4 has served to strengthen the conclusion that biodiversity is important in mitigating climate change. This importance stems from the role of ecosystems in the carbon cycle. Ecosystems sequester carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and then store it. Human-induced changes in those ecosystems can lead either to increased sequestration of carbon dioxide or to increased emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Promoting the former type of change and reducing the latter type of change can make a very significant contribution to climate change mitigation. The use of ecosystem-based mitigation policies can also contribute to sustaining a variety of ecosystem services including biodiversity conservation. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPCC: Fourth Assessment Report - Climate Change - Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability (2007)

  

  A global assessment of data since 1970 has shown it is likely that anthropogenic warming has had a discernible influence on many physical and biological systems…Other effects of regional climate changes on natural and human environments are emerging, although many are difficult to discern due to adaptation and non-climatic drivers…For increases in global average temperature exceeding 1.5-2.5°C and in concomitant atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, there are projected to be major changes in ecosystem structure and function, species’ ecological interactions, and species’ geographical ranges, with predominantly negative consequences for biodiversity, and ecosystem goods and services e.g., water and food supply. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Stern Review Report on the Economics of Climate Change (2007)

  

  The scientific evidence is now overwhelming: climate change presents very serious global risks, and it demands an urgent global response…Climate change may initially have small positive effects for a few developed countries, but is likely to be very damaging for the much higher temperature increases expected by mid- to late-century under BAU scenarios…Policies on climate change can also help to achieve other objectives. These co-benefits can significantly reduce the overall cost to the economy of reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. If climate policy is designed well, it can, for example, contribute to reducing ill-health and mortality from air pollution, and to preserving forests that contain a significant proportion of the world’s biodiversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Global Environment Outlook 4 (2007)

  

  Biodiversity is the foundation of life on earth and one of the pillars of sustainable development. Without the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, we will not achieve the Millennium Development Goals. The conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity is an essential element of any strategy to adapt to climate change. Through the Convention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the international community is committed to conserving biodiversity and combating climate change. The global response to these challenges needs to move much more rapidly, and with more determination at all levels – global, national and local. For the sake of current and future generations, we must achieve the goals of these landmark instruments. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WCMC: Crossroads of Life on Earth - Exploring means to meet the 2010 Biodiversity Target (2007)

  

  The aim of this study is to explore policy options that could have major positive or negative impacts on biodiversity. The main question is whether the 2010 Biodiversity Target can be met at global and regional levels. Effects up to 2050 are taken into account. According to a business as usual scenario (baseline), and six individual options, it is unlikely that the 2010 target will be met at either global level or regional level. The loss of biodiversity is expected to continue at an unchanged pace in the coming decades. Key drivers, global population and economic activity are expected to keep on growing. Between 2000 and 2050, the global population is projected to grow by 50% and the global economy to quadruple. The need for food, fodder, energy and wood will unavoidably lead to a decrease in the global natural stocks. The negative impact of climate change, nitrogen deposition, fragmentation, infrastructure and unchecked human settlement on biodiversity will further expand. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• CBD: Global Biodiversity Outlook 2 (2006)

  

  In using the Convention’s indicators to survey current trends, the Global Biodiversity Outlook demonstrates that biodiversity is being lost at all levels, for example: (a) Deforestation, mainly through conversion of forests to agricultural land, continues at an alarmingly high rate… (b) Trends of some 3,000 wild populations of species show a consistent decline in average species abundance of about 40% between 1970 and 2000; inland water species declined by 50%, while marine and terrestrial species both declined by around 30%… (c) More species are becoming threatened with extinction. The status of bird species show a continuing deterioration across all biomes over the last two decades and preliminary findings for other major groups, such as amphibians and mammals, indicate that the situation is likely worse than for birds…The threats to biodiversity are generally increasing. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005)

  

  Over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable period of time in human history, largely to meet rapidly growing demands for food, fresh water, timber, fiber, and fuel. This has resulted in a substantial and largely irreversible loss in the diversity of life on Earth. The changes that have been made to ecosystems have contributed to substantial net gains in human well-being and economic development, but these gains have been achieved at growing costs in the form of the degradation of many ecosystem services, increased risks of nonlinear changes, and the exacerbation of poverty for some groups of people. These problems, unless addressed, will substantially diminish the benefits that future generations obtain from ecosystems…The challenge of reversing the degradation of ecosystems while meeting increasing demands for their services can be partially met under some scenarios that the MA has considered, but these involve significant changes in policies, institutions, and practices that are not currently under way. Visit source and read quotes. View report.

  
  

  
  

2000 - 2004

• Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (2004)

  

  The Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA) is the first comprehensive, integrated assessment of climate change and ultraviolet (UV) radiation across the entire Arctic region…The primary impacts of climate change and increased UV radiation in the Arctic will be to its physical and biological systems. Chapter 6 describes the changes that have already been observed, and the impacts that are expected to occur in the frozen regions of the Arctic, including sea ice, permafrost, glaciers, and snow cover. River discharge and river and lake ice break-up and freeze-up are also discussed. Chapter 7 discusses impacts on the terrestrial ecosystems of the Arctic, drawing on extensive research, experimental data, observations, and indigenous knowledge. Biodiversity, risks to species, including displacements due to climate change, UV radiation effects, and feedback processes as the vegetation and the hydrological regime change are discussed. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Bank: Ensuring the Future (2004)

  

  To date, the World Bank Group (WBG) is the largest single international funding source for biodiversity projects. A previous review of the full biodiversity portfolio, covering the period from 1988 until 1999, showed that the WBG approved $2.6 billion for more than 200 projects worldwide to promote conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in 85 countries and 10 regional, multi-country efforts. This update shows that by the end of June 2004 (FY04), the figure for total biodiversity investment has risen to $4.7 billion, signifying that the World Bank remains committed to biodiversity conservation as a significant part of its sustainable development agenda…Nevertheless, biodiversity —especially (but not only) in the developing world—still faces many threats, often from the very development that is designed to improve livelihoods and address poverty alleviation. A major challenge for the future is thus to mainstream biodiversity into government programs, normal development assistance, and poverty alleviation programs by promoting positive synergies, while minimizing the negative impacts to biodiversity of potentially damaging investments such as infrastructure development. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Conservation International: Tourism and Biodiversity: Mapping Tourism’s Global Footprint (2003)

  

  Tourism is often described as the world’s “biggest” industry on the basis of its contribution to global gross domestic product (GDP), the number of jobs it generates, and the number of clients it serves. The scale of the industry and the rate at which it continues to grow present both opportunities and threats for biodiversity conservation. Biodiversity is essential to human development because of the goods and services it provides. An estimated 40 percent of the global economy is based on biological products and processes. However, on a global scale, biodiversity is being lost at a rate many times higher than that of natural extinction. This is caused by a number of factors, including uncontrolled land conversion, climate change, pollution, unsustainable harvesting of natural resources, and the introduction of invasive species. So great is the concern over the rate of decline, and its implications for human welfare, that biodiversity was identified as one of the five priority areas for the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development. To determine priority areas where biodiversity loss is a serious concern, Conservation International has identified a series of biodiversity “hotspots.” These hotspots represent priority areas for urgent conservation action on a global scale. They are also useful for looking at the impact of tourism on biodiversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Global Environment Outlook 3 (2003)

  

  Global biodiversity is being lost at a rate many times higher than that of natural extinction due to land conversion, climate change, pollution, unsustainable harvesting of natural resources and the introduction of exotic species. Land conversion is most intensive in tropical forests and less intensive in temperate, boreal and arctic regions; atmospheric nitrogen deposition is largest in northern temperate areas close to cities; introduction of exotic species is related to patterns of human activity. Human population growth together with unsustainable patterns of consumption, increasing production of waste and pollutants, urban development and international conflict are further contributory factors to biodiversity loss. Over the past three decades, decline and extinction of species have emerged as major environmental issues. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• IPCC: Climate Change and Biodiversity: Technical Paper V (2002)

  

  At the global level, human activities have caused and will continue to cause a loss in biodiversity through, inter alia, land-use and land-cover change; soil and water pollution and degradation (including desertification), and air pollution; diversion of water to intensively managed ecosystems and urban systems; habitat fragmentation; selective exploitation of species; the introduction of non-native species; and stratospheric ozone depletion. The current rate of biodiversity loss is greater than the natural background rate of extinction. Changes in climate exert additional pressure and have already begun to affect biodiversity. Climate change is projected to affect all aspects of biodiversity; however, the projected changes have to take into account the impacts from other past, present, and future human activities, including increasing atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2). Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WCMC: World Atlas of Biodiversity: Earth’s Living resources in the 21st century (2002)

  

  The diversity of life is the defining feature of planet Earth. It is unique - as far as we know - in the infinity of the universe. For 11 000 years since agriculture began, humankind has increasingly appropriated the biological resources and natural productivity of lands and seas to support the expansion of civilizations and technologies. Everything that we have achieved has its origins in living animals, plants and the communities and ecosystems of which they are a part. But it is only in the past 30 years, since the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm in 1972, that we have begun to recognize the limits to natures gifts. We now know that our own success is placing strain on nature’s ability to evolve, diversify, cleanse our air and water and provide us with the raw materials we need for food, fuel, fiber and health…The reality is that this World Atlas of Biodiversity is of greater relevance now than at any time in the past. The world’s living wealth remains the cornerstone of sustainable livelihoods and quality lifestyles in both the industrialized and developing worlds. Recognition of this fact is spreading, and the value of biodiversity in people’s lives, socially, economically and environmentally, has never been more apparent than it is today. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• CAFF: Arctic Flora and Fauna: Status and Conservation (2001)

  

  This is the first truly circumpolar overview of Arctic biodiversity and provides a clear understanding of the importance of the Earth’s largest ecoregion and its status in the face of a rapidly changing world. It observes that while much of the Arctic was in its natural state and that the impacts of human activity were relatively minor, individuals, species and ecosystems throughout the Arctic faced threats from many causes, and that the long-term consequences of human impacts were unknown. It particularly noted that the information necessary to determine status and trends of Arctic fauna was fragmentary and almost non-existent for flora. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• CBD: Global Biodiversity Outlook 1 (2001)

  

  The rising levels of consumption of the components of biological diversity – as the human population has increased and as industrial production has expanded – is straining these natural processes to the limit. Major impacts on all ecosystems can be observed in all parts of the globe. The rates of erosion and loss of biodiversity are high and, in some cases, the situation is critical. At the global level, rising expectations and patterns of unsustainable consumption co-exist with unjustifiable levels of poverty. Unless both are addressed such that the use of the components of biological diversity becomes sustainable, biodiversity will continue to be lost. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WCMC: The 25 Largest Un-fragmented Wilderness Areas in the Arctic (2001)

  

  The main purpose of this project was to explore where the last remote wilderness areas, resorts for nature, man and biodiversity can be found in the Arctic, as well as the pressures they are subjected to and their main threats. Since the Arctic Environment Protection Strategy (AEPS), the awareness of large undisturbed areas in the Arctic has grown, as well as the realisation of the threats and the speed of fragmentation…All 25 sites have been described in terras of general features, biodiversity and major threats possibly leading to further fragmentation. It seemed to be too big a task to describe all the features of biodiversity. In the report we focused on globally threatened and endemic or semi-endemic species with almost their entire distribution in the actual wilderness area or only one more site. In addition we listed species and where available population status for species very much reliant on large, undisturbed territories. These include mainly large bird predators and carnivores, but also migrating species among the mammals or those living in large herds, such as reindeer, musk, ox and others, particularly vulnerable to fragmentation. Among the threats we mostly focused on the exploitation of mineral resources, but also exploitation of forest and hydropower, as well as the developments in tourism. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WCMC: A Global Overview of Protected Areas on the World Heritage List of Particular Importance for Biodiversity (2000)

  

  This working paper provides a global overview of the current coverage of existing World Heritage Sites of particular importance for the conservation of biodiversity, and suggests existing protected areas of significant biodiversity value, which may merit future World Heritage nomination. In 1996, IUCN initiated a project to prepare a global strategy for Natural World Heritage sites, and as part of this process began to prepare a series of thematic global overviews on World Heritage site coverage. This document is an updated addition to these theme studies. A total of 141 sites, representing 65 countries and over 142 million ha of protected areas were identified as being of particular importance for biodiversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

1990 - 1999

• UNEP: Cultural and spiritual values of biodiversity (1999)

  

  Besides the profound ethical and aesthetic implications, it is clear that the loss of biodiversity has serious economic and social costs. The genes, species, ecosystems and human knowledge that are being lost represent a living library of options available for preventing and/ or adapting to local and global change. Biodiversity is a part of our daily lives and livelihoods, and constitutes the resources on which families, communities, nations and future generations depend…Respect for biological diversity implies respect for human diversity. Indeed, both elements are fundamental to stability and durable peace on earth. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Freshwater biodiversity: a preliminary global assessment (1998)

  

  Water as a resource has two key features: it is absolutely essential for human survival; the amount of water in the world is constant, so that although it is used, the stock is not globally diminished but nor can it be increased. At below global level, water is often not available where and when needed, nor in the appropriate amounts, nor with the necessary quality. The two last are particularly important to the maintenance of freshwater biodiversity. The finite supply of freshwater on the Earth is now being used by a human population that has grown exponentially in the past few hundred years, and continues to grow, and which demands increasing volumes of water to service agricultural and industrial processes on which economic development depends. Freshwater systems are under growing pressure, as flow patterns are disrupted and the load of waste substances increases. Inevitably per capita shares of water for human use are decreasing and water stress is becoming more widespread. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• CEQ: Environmental Quality Report (1997)

  

  Species and ecosystems provide a vast array of valuable services. For example, about one third of U.S. agricultural output is from insect-pollinated plants. Nature provides many other services, such as producing raw materials, purifying water, storing waste, and regulating climate. Despite the huge value of species and ecosystem services, many such services are threatened by human activities. Pollinators such as wild honeybees, for example, are declining as a result of habitat fragmentation, loss of nesting sites, exposure to pesticides, and many other factors…The analysis revealed that, based on their global rarity, about one third of the species surveyed were in some danger of extinction…Those animals that depend on freshwater habitats—mussels, crayfish, fishes, and amphibians—are in the worst condition overall…The number of threatened and endangered species has risen steadily since 1980. Ecosystems and biodiversity are threatened by a variety of factors, including conversion of natural lands for other uses, pollution, exploitation, and invasions of non-indigenous species. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WCMC: Industrial reliance on biodiversity (1997)

  

  The object of this study is to ascertain the extent of industrial reliance on biological diversity; we are attempting to determine the extent to which biodiversity feeds directly into western industries, and the extent to which they rely upon it. There is a general consensus among environmental scientists that biological diversity plays a very important role in the activities of some of our industries. However, there is very little direct evidence of the degree to which the industries depend on this biodiversity…The findings of the project demonstrate that biodiversity functions in two fashions, as a basic commodity and as informational input. As a commodity, biodiversity is most important in the forestry and fisheries sectors…By far the more important contribution biodiversity makes to Northern industries must be its role as an informational input in specific industries. Western society is built upon a biological foundation and two of our most important industries (agriculture and medicine) are in fact defence systems for the maintenance of this bio-foundation…Biodiversity conservation is a simple matter of providing the essential foundations upon which these vital industries are built. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• Biodiversity: The UK Steering Group Report Volume 1 (1995)

  

  There are many reasons why we should conserve biodiversity. We should hand on to the next generation an environment no less rich than the one we ourselves inherited; species which have evolved over many thousands of years may be lost very quickly and cannot be recreated; natural processes help to protect our planet, and in maintaining the productivity of our crops, we depend on a reservoir of wild relatives, and a pool of genetic material that we can go back to, in order to reinforce our selection. We have lost over 100 species in the UK this century, including 7% of our dragonflies, 5% of our butterflies and more than 2% of our fish and mammals. We acknowledge that policies are now more sensitive to the needs of biodiversity, but more needs to be done to protect and enhance what we have. To improve air quality, we need to reduce pollutant emissions focusing on photochemical pollution and particulates. The use of water for domestic, agricultural and industrial processes can affect biodiversity in a variety of ways. Systems for producing, transmitting and using energy have a direct or indirect impact on biodiversity, particularly those associated with electricity generation and transport. Agricultural and fisheries practices, minerals and aggregates extraction, urbanisation and an expanding transport network also impact upon biodiversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Biodiversity Programme and Implementation Strategy (1995)

  

  Biodiversity, the product of millions of years of biological evolution has always provided mankind with food, fibre, shelter, medicines and socio-cultural enrichment. Yet we are destroying vast numbers of invaluable species and genetic combinations and compromising vital terrestrial and aquatic habitats and ecosystems at a time when human dependence on genetic resources and ecological services of ecosystems is increasing rapidly due to human population growth…Such changes call for a major recasting of political principles and covenants/contracts governing international co-operation, production and consumption patterns, exchange of commodities and information, as well as transfer of technologies including biotechnology. It calls for charting a new path, with a new vision, vigour and renewed mandate. It calls for an effective implementation strategy. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Global Biodiversity Assessment (1995)

  

  It is clear that even if the above-mentioned numbers should be regarded as only crude estimates, current extinction rates are dramatically higher than background extinction rates. For every species that goes extinct, many populations have become extinct (termed local extinction or extirpation)…Causes of extinction, i.e. those factors that make populations vulnerable to extinction in the first place, include habitat degradation (loss, change in quality and fragmentation), over-exploitation and persecution, and introductions of alien species…The rich complexity of both the physical environment and the interactions among organisms and species appears to be crucial for the maintenance and generation of biodiversity. Thus, the ecosystem and its component communities appear to be very appropriate targets for conservation, because they take into account explicitly the many ecological interactions between organisms and their biotic and abiotic natural environment. A space-orientated approach up to the landscape scale may be the most appropriate tool with which to conserve the vast majority of biological diversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: Global Biodiversity (1993)

  

  Thousands of years ago, humanity learned how to manage the natural environment by clearing land, growing crops and rearing domesticated animals. Crop yields and the productivity of animals kept for food have been improved through cross-breeding, both with other domesticated strains and with wild relatives which often contain valuable genetic material, including resistance to certain diseases and pests. Within the past few hundred years, human activity has had a profound and, in some cases, irreversible effect on the environment and on individual species. As the human population has increased, more and more land has been cleared for agriculture, settlement and industry, and species have been collected from the wild at an unsustainable rate…Thousands of species worldwide are under threat from overuse, loss of habitat and environmental pollution. Because species in ecosystems are interdependent, the loss of one species can lead to the disappearance of many others. Domestic animals and crop species are also under threat. Local breeds and crops are dying out as they are replaced by the small number of crops and animals developed for modern intensive farming. The value of maintaining biodiversity is gradually being realized, and steps are being taken to conserve species and ecosystems. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: The World Environment 1972-1992: Two Decades of Challenge (1992)

  

  Our planet is under siege. Assaults on the atmosphere - the greenhouse effect, the depletion of the ozone layer and increasing air pollution - pose a still-unquantified threat to human life. The dumping of hazardous wastes, and land-based sources of pollution, present a similar threat to the oceans. On land we are destroying a tropical forest the size of Austria every year, and more than a hundred species of wild plants and animals are lost forever each day…Three times since its inception (1982, 1987 and 1992) UNEP has undertaken a more wide-ranging study. The results of the present study are the most disturbing of the three….The World Environment 1972-1992 offers a look at the environment from three perspectives. Ten introductory chapters detail the range of environmental threats and examine how they have unfolded over the past two decades. The threats include those that were well known two decades ago, such as toxic chemicals, air and water pollution, and land degradation (desertification, deforestation and soil loss). They also include those that have emerged over the period under review - stratospheric ozone depletion, loss of biodiversity and climate change. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• WCMC: Global Biodiversity: status of the Earth’s living resources (1992)

  

  In your hands you now hold the most comprehensive review of global biodiversity ever compiled. It represents the product of numerous scientists, consultants and research institutes each of whom has generously contributed data or assistance to the compilation of this Report, together with the substantial information holdings that WCMC already manages. Yet so vast and diverse are the Earth’s living resources - the genes, species and ecosystems that comprise the planet’s biotic wealth - and the threats that these resources now face, that this massive effort has barely scratched the surface…Over geological time, all species have a finite span of existence. Species extinction is therefore a natural process which occurs without the intervention of man. However, it is beyond question that extinctions caused directly or indirectly by man are occurring at a rate which far exceeds any reasonable estimates of background extinction rates, and which, to the extent that it is correlated with habitat perturbation, must be increasing. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: The State of the World Environment (1991)

  

  Biological resources are the basis of human life. The intense pressures on biological diversity are a direct reflection of increasing human numbers. These pressures are expected to increase until populations stabilize as projected by the United Nations by about the year 2050-2070 at about 10 billion. Such stabilization will be achieved only if present efforts to curtail population growth are pursued vigorously. As population grows, however, the pressure on biological resources will reach levels far beyond those prevalent now. The continued erosion of these resources poses a serious threat of ecosystem collapse. Biological diversity losses have serious worldwide implications for agriculture, medicine and industry; in fact for human welfare and his very existence. Biological diversity is threatened because people are out of balance with their environment; benefits are being gained from exploiting natural habitats without paying the full costs of such exploitation. Current human populations and standards of living are subsidized by non-renewable resources that have accumulated over hundreds of millions of years, yet are being consumed in a few generations. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• World Plant Conservation Bibliography (1990)

  

  The relatively recent explosion in ‘green’ thinking and policy making worldwide, together with the concern at the rate of loss of both species and habitats, has led to a growing demand for up-to-date facts and figures about plant species and vegetation types and how they should be conserved. Fortunately, much has been published on this subject in recent years, yet there has been no obvious route for the conservation and development community to gain access to this information quickly and easily. The relevant literature tends to be markedly multi-disciplinary, and is thinly scattered across such varied fields as botany, forestry, ecology, horticulture, planning, economics, politics and environmental law…This volume contains over 10,000 reference citations to published literature considered relevant to international, national or local plant conservation. Visit source. View report.

  
  

Earlier

• NSB: Loss of Biological Diversity - A Global Crisis Requiring International Solutions (1989)

  

  We are at a critical juncture for the conservation and study of biological diversity: such an opportunity will never occur again. Understanding and maintaining that diversity is the key to humanity’s continued prosperous and stable existence on Earth. The extinction event that we are witnessing is the most catastrophic loss of species in the last 65 million years. Most importantly, it is the first major extinction event that has been caused by a single species, one that we hope will act in its own self interest to stem the tide. Unless the international community can, indeed, reverse the trend, the rate of extinction over the next few decades is likely to rise to at least 1000 times the normal background rate of extinction, and will ultimately result in the loss of a quarter or more of the species on earth. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: The State of the World Environment 1989

  

  Environmental indicators reveal mixed signals. improvement, stabilization, and deterioration…Rapid destruction of natural environments is reducing the number of species and the amount of genetic variation within individual species. So biological diversity is declining. If this trend is not hailed and reversed it could have serious and far-reaching repercussions for humanity. Biological diversity must be seen as a global resource, like the atmosphere or the oceans. All nations have a common interest in it and all have a common responsibility towards it. Despite such action as has already been taken to promote conservation, there is a pressing need for a comprehensive strategy, including a global convention to provide a strong legal basis for international co-operation in conserving biological diversity. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• NAP: Biodiversity (1988)

  

  Biological diversity must be treated more seriously as a global resource, to be indexed, used, and above all, preserved. Three circumstances conspire to give this matter an unprecedented urgency. First, exploding human populations are degrading the environment at an accelerating rate, especially in tropical countries. Second, science is discovering new uses for biological diversity in ways that can relieve both human suffering and environmental destruction. Third, much of the diversity is being irreversibly lost through extinction caused by the destruction of natural habitats, again especially in the tropics. Overall, we are locked into a race. We must hurry to acquire the knowledge on which a wise policy of conservation and development can be based for centuries to come. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future (1987)

  

  But the “environment” is where we all live; and “development” is what we all do in attempting to improve our lot within that abode. The two are inseparable. Further, development issues must be seen as crucial by the political leaders who feel that their countries have reached a plateau towards which other nations must strive. Many of the development paths of the industrialized nations are clearly unsustainable. And the development decisions of these countries, because of their great economic and political power, will have a profound effect upon the ability of all peoples to sustain human progress for generations to come. Many critical survival issues are related to uneven development, poverty, and population growth. They all place unprecedented pressures on the planet’s lands, waters, forests, and other natural resources, not least in the developing countries. The downward spiral of poverty and environmental degradation is a waste of opportunities and of resources. In particular, it is a waste of human resources. These links between poverty, inequality, and environmental degradation formed a major theme in our analysis and recommendations. What is needed now is a new era of economic growth - growth that is forceful and at the same time socially and environmentally sustainable. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: The World Environment 1972 - 1982 (1982)

  

  The condition of the physical environment, so obviously a focus of emphasis in the years leading up to Stockholm, has become of lesser concern to those commissioning these reviews. As the chapters of the present volume reveal, this shift of emphasis does not mean that there have not been significant changes in the physical environment. Carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere continued to rise, concern about acid rains grew, and fears about man’s impact on stratospheric ozone remained. The pollution of the oceans and inland waters and the loss of soil and of productivity through erosion, desertification and salinity, were at the forefront of attention. The depletion of genetic resources, especially in the tropical forests, was much debated. The volume and number of manufactured chemicals reaching the environment increased enormously. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UNEP: The State of the Environment 1975

  

  Land and water are important requirements for food production. As the need to increase food production becomes more urgent, man is faced with continued loss of productive soil through desertification, erosion, salination and other forms of destructive land use…Overlogging of tropical forests has had similar effects. It is estimated that already man’s activities have despoiled some 10 per cent of the world’s arable land. In addition, good agricultural land is coming under intense pressure, in both developed and developing countries, from urban uses. There is still land available which can be brought under cultivation, but as larger and larger areas are given over to farming, the unexploited tracts available to serve as reservoirs of species diversity and natural ecosystems become smaller and smaller. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: Report of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment - Stockholm, June 5-16, 1972

  

  Man is both creature and moulder of his environment, which gives him physical sustenance and affords him the opportunity for intellectual, moral, social and spiritual growth. In the long and tortuous evolution of the human race on this planet a stage has been reached when, through the rapid acceleration of science and technology, man has acquired the power to transform his environment in countless ways and on an unprecedented scale. Both aspects of man’s environment, the natural and the man-made, are essential to his well-being and to the enjoyment of basic human rights-even the right to life itself…A point has been reached in history when we must shape our actions throughout the world with a more prudent care for their environmental consequences. Through ignorance or indifference we can do massive and irreversible harm to the earthly environment on which our life and well-being depend. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: Problems of the human environment: report of the Secretary-General (1969)

  

  In the discussions held by the General Assembly at its twenty-third session it was emphasized that for the first time in the history of mankind, there is arising a crisis of world-wide proportions involving developed and developing countries alike -the crisis of the human environment. Portents of this crisis have long been apparent- in the explosive growth of human populations, in the poor integration of a powerful and efficient technology with environmental requirements, in the deterioration of agricultural lands, in the unplanned extension of urban areas, in the decrease of available space and the growing danger of extinction of many forms of animal and plant life. It is becoming apparent that if current trends continue, the future of life on earth could be endangered. It is urgent, therefore, to focus world attention on those problems which threaten humanity in an environment that permits the realization of the highest human aspirations, and on the action necessary to deal with them. Visit source. View report.

  
  

• UN: Activities of United Nations Organizations and Programmes Relevant to the Human Environment (1968)

  

  Generally, emphasis has been put on work programmes concerned with pollution of the human environment, this being an aspect of the subject-matter outlined in the Swedish memorandum which has up to the present time concerned United Nations organizations and programmes more than others. Pollution of the environment, air, water and soil, from different sources, is dealt with by the ILO, FAO, UNESCO, WHO, WMO, IAEA and, on the regional level, ECE. Pollution of the sea caused by ships is the concern of IMCO. Pollution caused by radiation is the concern of IAEA, UNSCEAR, WHO and FAO. The proper and rational use of land, including problems of soil erosion, soil conservation and the establishment and protection of forests, is being studied particularly by FAO. Visit source. View report.

  
  

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Why And Biodiversity? To study the issues:

	De- forestation		Over- exploitation		Sea Use Changes		Coastal Loss		Greenhouse Gas Emissions
	Pollinator Decline		Marine Pollution		Land Use Changes		Habitat Loss		Intensive Agriculture

| And Biodiversity

…Sweet is the lore which Nature brings;
Our meddling intellect
Mis-shapes the beauteous forms of things:—
We murder to dissect.

Enough of Science and of Art;
Close up those barren leaves;
Come forth, and bring with you a heart
That watches and receives.

-“The Tables Turned”
William Wordsworth

| And Biodiversity

…Frost that kills the little rubber-plant -
leaves of kok-sagyyz-stalks, can’t
harm the roots; they still grow
in frozen ground.

Once where there was a prickley-pear;
leaf clinging to a barbed wire,
a root shot down to grow
in earth two feet below;

-“Nevertheless”
Marianne Moore

| And Biodiversity

Knowledge never learned of schools,
Of the wild bee’s morning chase,
Of the wild-flower’s time and place,
…How the tortoise bears his shell,

How the woodchuck digs his cell,
…How the robin feeds her young,
How the oriole’s nest is hung;
Where the whitest lilies blow,

Where the freshest berries grow,
…Nature answers all he asks;
Hand in hand with her he walks,
Face to face with her he talks..

-“The Barefoot Boy”
John Greenleaf Whittier

| And Biodiversity

I believe a leaf of grass is no less
than the journey-work of the stars,
And the pismire is equally perfect,
and a grain of sand, and the egg of the wren,

And the tree-toad is a chef-d’oeuvre
for the highest,
And the running blackberry would adorn
the parlors of heaven,
And the narrowest hinge in my hand

puts to scorn all machinery,
And the cow crunching
with depress’d head
surpasses any statue…

-“Song of Myself, 31”
Walt Whitman