Why those in development should care about biodiversity, and why biodiversity conservationists should care more about people

I am frequently asked: why do we need biodiversity? What’s in it for people? 

For too long, development has proceeded as if nature has no value, while conservation has largely proceeded as though people have no agency. Those in international development tend to see biodiversity conservation as an enemy of the poor, while those in conservation often see development as the enemy of biodiversity. The results of this disconnect are quite clear: global health and poverty crises, climate change and accelerating rates of biodiversity loss (despite a huge increase in “protected areas”). Things need to change. And fast.

The fact is sustainable development and biodiversity are deeply interwoven. We cannot develop sustainably without taking biodiversity into account, and we cannot sustainably protect biodiversity without taking people into account: their fundamental needs, their knowledge about how to restore and manage natural habitats and their stewardship.

But, why is biodiversity the bedrock of sustainable development? 

Biodiversity is the diversity of genes, species, habitats and ecosystems. It is a vitally important property of natural systems. It is this diversity that secures the flow of all the ecosystem services on which we depend at local and global levels: from clean air and water, to food, fuel, medicine, pollinated crops, fertile soil, now and into the future. Those in development have long accepted that natural ecosystems provide vital resources for people and they value the abundance of the resources; the missing piece is often the diversity of ecosystems. A monoculture tree plantation is not the same as a rich natural biodiverse forest. The monoculture might currently provide the main resource needed (timber or carbon storage or protection from storm surges), but it is unlikely to continue doing so well into the future. The more diverse (or species rich) a ecosystem (whether a grassland, reef or forest) the more productive it tends to be and, crucially, the more resilient it is to change. In other words, diverse ecosystems are much more likely to produce services to people when the climate changes or when a pathogen invades; monocultures are much less likely to. So, in a warming world it's the diversity that counts. 

More: because it is biodiversity that secures nature's value to people well into the future, protecting biodiversity is a matter of intergenerational justice. And that alone should make those in international development sit up!

“Healthy ecosystems underpin healthy, resilient nations and communities, and we cannot achieve our Sustainable Development Goals without safeguarding nature” Achim Steiner, Head of the United Nations Development Programme (2017).

LEARN MORE IN OUR NEW REPORT: BIODIVERSITY IS A DEVELOPMENT ISSUE

KEY REFERENCES

Cardinale BJ et al. 2012. Biodiversity loss and its impact on humanity. Nature 486, 59 – 67 (doi:10. 1038/nature11148)

Cernasky R. 2018. How to plant a trillion trees. Nature 560, 542-544 (doi: 10.1038/d41586-018-06031-x)

Constanza et al. 2014. Changes in the global value of ecosystem services. Global Environ. Change 26: 152-158. 

Diaz et al. 2018. Assessing nature's contributions to people. Science 359: 270-272 (doi: 10.1126/science.aap8826) 

Griscom et al. 2017. Natural Climate Solutions. www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1710465114.

Royal Society. 2014. Resilience to extreme weather. Report. 

Seddon N et al 2016. The value of biodiversity in the Anthropocene. Proc. R. Soc. B 283. (doi:10.1098/rspb.2016.2094) 

Watson JEM et al. 2016 Catastrophic declines in wilderness areas undermine global