Imagine a world without animals plants would not grow, meaning no food for other animals and certainly no food for us. People all around the world rely on about 50,000 wild species for necessities such as food, energy, medicine and income, according to a new scientific report. The report concluded that humans must make drastic changes to hunting and other practices to address a rising biodiversity crisis.
For over four years, 85 experts from 33 countries prepared a report, which covered this issue, for the United Nations. The report covers all the possible pathways for using wild species either sustainably or in ways that ensure their availability for future generations. It is supported by thousands of scientific studies and other references.
“Half of humanity benefits from and makes use of wild species, and often without even knowing that they’re doing so,” said Marla R. Emery, one of the co-chairs of the assessment, which was conducted by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Last Thursday, a summary was approved in Germany by representatives from 139 countries, including the United States, with the full report on the road to publication in a few months.
The findings in the report may have a direct effect on international policy very soon. The report was conducted partly at the request of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, a treaty meant to ensure that the global trade in plants and animals does not endanger their survival in the wild. The parties to the treaty will use the findings from the assessment to inform their decisions surrounding trade at their conference in Panama in November.
The report said that the exploitation of wild species wasn’t the only factor driving the decline; another major force was human-caused climate change. Growing human populations and consumption, along with technological advances that make many practices more efficient will also put a bigger pressure on wild species.
“We have to make sure these policy instruments benefit everybody,” said Emma Archer, who is one of the assessment’s lead authors. “There doesn’t have to be both winners and losers.”
Source articles: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/08/climate/species-biodiversity-united-nations.html
https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/do-humans-need-animals-to-survive.html
https://ipbes.net/
https://ipbes.net/media_release/Values_Assessment_Published
https://cites.org/eng/disc/parties/chronolo.php
https://cites.org/eng/disc/what.php
For over four years, 85 experts from 33 countries prepared a report, which covered this issue, for the United Nations. The report covers all the possible pathways for using wild species either sustainably or in ways that ensure their availability for future generations. It is supported by thousands of scientific studies and other references.
“Half of humanity benefits from and makes use of wild species, and often without even knowing that they’re doing so,” said Marla R. Emery, one of the co-chairs of the assessment, which was conducted by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Last Thursday, a summary was approved in Germany by representatives from 139 countries, including the United States, with the full report on the road to publication in a few months.
The findings in the report may have a direct effect on international policy very soon. The report was conducted partly at the request of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, a treaty meant to ensure that the global trade in plants and animals does not endanger their survival in the wild. The parties to the treaty will use the findings from the assessment to inform their decisions surrounding trade at their conference in Panama in November.
The report said that the exploitation of wild species wasn’t the only factor driving the decline; another major force was human-caused climate change. Growing human populations and consumption, along with technological advances that make many practices more efficient will also put a bigger pressure on wild species.
“We have to make sure these policy instruments benefit everybody,” said Emma Archer, who is one of the assessment’s lead authors. “There doesn’t have to be both winners and losers.”
Source articles: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/08/climate/species-biodiversity-united-nations.html
https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/do-humans-need-animals-to-survive.html
https://ipbes.net/
https://ipbes.net/media_release/Values_Assessment_Published
https://cites.org/eng/disc/parties/chronolo.php
https://cites.org/eng/disc/what.php
