STS FINALS 04

• Vertebrates fell to 60% from the 1970s due to human causes.
• The World Wide Fund for Nature and Zoological Society of London reported an annual decrease in wildlife by 2 %.
• Marco Lambertini - He is the General Director of WWF International, described that the disappearance of wildlife is at an unprecedented rate. 
•  Mass extinction is described as the disappearance of species at a rate of 1,000 faster than usual.
• Biodiversity -is defined as the vast variety of life forms in the entire Earth.
• biodiversity - is "the variability among living organisms from all sources, including terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes
• Biodiversity -is the source of the essential goods and ecological services that constitute the source of life for all and it has direct consumptive value in food, agriculture, medicine, and in industry."
•  Habitat loss and destruction -Major contributing factor is the inhabitation of human beings and the use of land for economic gains.
• Alterations in ecosystem composition -Alterations and sudden changes, either within species groups or within the environment, could begin to change entire ecosystems. Alterations in ecosystems are a critical factor contributing to species and habitat loss
• Over-exploitation - Over-hunting, overfishing, or over-collecting of species can quickly lead to its decline. Changing consumption patterns of humans is often cited as the key reason for this unsustainable exploitation of natural resources.
• Pollution and contamination -Biological systems respond slowly to changes in their surrounding environment. Pollution and contamination cause irreversible damage to species and varieties
• Global climate change - Both climate variability and climate change cause biodiversity loss. Species and populations may be lost permanently if they are not provided with enough time to adapt to changing climatic conditions.
• Threats to Biodiversity  

  • Habitat loss and destruction.
  • Alterations in ecosystem composition 
  • Over-exploitation.
  • Pollution and contamination
  • Global climate change.
• the basic concept about biodiversity loss was from Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace.
• According to the World Health Organization, biodiversity is a vital element of human being's nutrition because of its influence to food. production. 
• Biodiversity -is a vital element of human being's nutrition because of its influence to food. production. 
• Biodiversity -is a major factor that contributes to sustainable food production for human beings. 
• society or a population -must have access to a sufficient variety of nutritious food as it is a determinant of their health as human beings
• Nutrition and biodiversity -are linked at many levels: the ecosystem, with food production as an ecosystem service; the species in the ecosystem; and the genetic diversity within species
• • Habitat simplification
  • species loss 
  • species succession 

  often enhance communities, vulnerabilities as a function of environmental receptivity to ill health
• Basic needs of living organisms such as air, water, food, and habitat
• nvironmental hazards increase the risk of 

  • Cancer
  • heart disease
  • asthma 
• Physical Hazards, such as:

  • Pollution
  • toxic chemicals
  • food contaminants

   
• SOCIAL HAZARDS, such as:

  • dangerous work
  • poor housing conditions
  • urban sprawl
  • poverty
• Vulnerable subpopulation is a group with an increased susceptibility to the adverse effects of an environmental risk factor, due to their age, genetics, health status, or some other condition.
• As stated by Tilman, "The Earth will retain its most striking feature, its biodiversity, only if humans have the prescience to do so. This will occur, it seems, only if we realize the extent to which we use biodiversity
• Lack of basic necessities is a significant cause of human mortality.