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What is Biodiversity?
- Biodiversity – or biological diversity – has been an issue for long now, but the concept is quite new.
- The Convention of Biological Diversity defined biodiversity as “the variability among living organisms from all sources [...] this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems” (Article 2, CBD).
In the past few years, biodiversity has increasingly appeared as a huge challenge: not only for conservation NGOs, but for businesses too.
What makes biodiversity such a burning issue?
Biodiversity is the foundation for economic, social and cultural development. Continued biodiversity loss – whether from climate change, pollution or unsustainable use of natural resources – will irreversibly compromise the supply of water, food, air and other natural resources that societies and businesses depend upon but often taken for granted. If the entire chain of production of any goods is taken into consideration, biodiversity will most probably appear at the very end.
Regarding the actual environmental modifications, scientists affirm that we are living during the six major mass extinction period of the Earth’s resources. This drop in species biodiversity is increasingly seen as a threat for economic, social and cultural development. Human beings’ activities are designated among the most responsible for this biodiversity loss.
Ecosystem services must be considered as keepers not only for the Earth’s wealth, but also for populations’ development. Biodiversity is a very strategic resource tank.
Facing the threats, international leaders decided in 2002 to fight biodiversity loss, and committed to reduce this loss by 2010. The EU pledge, which was decided in 2001, was taken as a framework to achieve this goal.
The following are some examples of biodiversity loss;
- The actual mass extinction of species we are facing is estimated to be between 1,000 and 10,000 higher that the natural extinction rate. The global abundance of species rapidly declined (by 40%) between 1970 and 2000.
- 23% of amphibians and 19% of reptiles (2009), 15% of mammals (2007) and 13% of birds (2004) in Europe are threatened with extinction (European Redlist).
- Human activities induce climate-change, which has an impact on biodiversity loss.
- The over-exploitation of resources (extraction, fishing, hunting…) threatens habitats and species.
- 42% of anti-cancer drugs are biodiversity-based
- The loss of biodiversity weakens natural barriers against natural disasters
Experts assessed the value of global ecosystem services at $16-$64 trillion. Moreover, the mid term report of “The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity study” (TEEB) released in 2008, estimated the annual welfare loss generated by loss of ecosystem services by 2050 will reach 6% of the global GDP.