A report by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, recently released to the public, declared that billions of people worldwide rely on wild species for food, income, medicine, energy, and more. The assessment additionally declared that the advancement of human technology has put greater pressures on wild species, which could go extinct if people do not make changes to slow down this biodiversity crisis.
“Half of humanity benefits from and makes use of wild species, and often without even knowing that they’re doing so,” Marla R. Emery, one of the co-chairs of the report stated.
The new scientific report that took four years’ to prepare, by eighty-five experts from thirty-three countries, revealed that billions of people across the globe rely on around 50,000 wild species for food, medicine, income and more. It “draws upon thousands of scientific studies and other references, including a body of Indigenous and local knowledge”, according to the New York Times. The report also stated that people of Indigenous and poor communities are most immediately affected by the crisis.
The new assessment was built off one published in 2019, which declared over a million plant and animal species critically endangered due to human activity and interventions. Following that, in 2020, another report stated that the nations had not acted much on international commitments to help with the situation. However, this recent report focused more on ways people worldwide can sustainably use wild species without the risk of extinction.
Viviana Figueroa, an Indigenous lawyer and activist who participated in dialogues with the report authors, stated, “If wildlife disappears, our culture is at risk. Our lifestyle and our livelihood is at risk. There is still a lot of work to be done, but at least there is some recognition.”
Around 30% of the wild species humans use that are also classified as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature experienced stable or increased population according to a study conducted in the report. This shows that, up to this point, using these species has not directly affected their endangerment.
The report also stated that global warming is also a major factor causing the decline of wild species. “Growing human populations and consumption, along with technological advances that make many extractive practices more efficient, will also put greater pressures on wild species,” the New York Times says.
“Half of humanity benefits from and makes use of wild species, and often without even knowing that they’re doing so,” Marla R. Emery, one of the co-chairs of the report stated.
The new scientific report that took four years’ to prepare, by eighty-five experts from thirty-three countries, revealed that billions of people across the globe rely on around 50,000 wild species for food, medicine, income and more. It “draws upon thousands of scientific studies and other references, including a body of Indigenous and local knowledge”, according to the New York Times. The report also stated that people of Indigenous and poor communities are most immediately affected by the crisis.
The new assessment was built off one published in 2019, which declared over a million plant and animal species critically endangered due to human activity and interventions. Following that, in 2020, another report stated that the nations had not acted much on international commitments to help with the situation. However, this recent report focused more on ways people worldwide can sustainably use wild species without the risk of extinction.
Viviana Figueroa, an Indigenous lawyer and activist who participated in dialogues with the report authors, stated, “If wildlife disappears, our culture is at risk. Our lifestyle and our livelihood is at risk. There is still a lot of work to be done, but at least there is some recognition.”
Around 30% of the wild species humans use that are also classified as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature experienced stable or increased population according to a study conducted in the report. This shows that, up to this point, using these species has not directly affected their endangerment.
The report also stated that global warming is also a major factor causing the decline of wild species. “Growing human populations and consumption, along with technological advances that make many extractive practices more efficient, will also put greater pressures on wild species,” the New York Times says.
