Climate Education Class for Sunday, 5/19/19 -- Resources, Links, & Notes

Topic: The landmark U.N. report on biodiversity.

Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Global Assessment. Chair, Sir Robert Watson.  Full report to be released later this year.

IPBES global report: Species extinction rate is accelerating  --  According to a United Nations report, up to 1 million animal and plant species are on the verge of extinction. Nature’s current rate of decline is unparalleled, the report says, and the accelerating rate of extinctions “means grave impacts on people around the world are now likely.”   Washington Post , 5-6-19

12-page Media Release: (Excellent and readable.) 
https://www.ipbes.net/news/Media-Release-Global-Assessment

Overview, Washington Post:  “One Million Species Face Extinction, U.N. Report Says. And Humans Will Suffer as a Result.”
 https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/05/06/one-million-species-face-extinction-un-panel-says-humans-will-suffer-result/?utm_term=.6afe102ef871

  “What Losing One Million Species Means for the Planet—And Humanity”  https://therevelator.org/one-million-extinctions/

Summary for Policymakers of the Global Assessment Report (39 pages), released Monday, 5-6-19, is available along with media resources at  http://bit.ly/IPBESReport

Some points from the above sources:

·        Of an estimated 8 million plant and animal species (including 5.5 million insect species), 1 million are threatened with extinction, many within the coming decades.

·        The rate of loss is accelerating.

·        The main drivers are:  1) changes in land and sea use   2) direct exploitation of organisms; (3) climate change (4) pollution  (5) invasive and alien species

·        Transformative changes will  be needed to restore and protect nature.

·        Expect opposition from vested interests.

·        Every species has a function in the ecosystem and are key to all the other species in the system.

·        This can lead to a cascade effect in the food web.

·        The loss of ecosystem services that nature provides is absolutely necessary for our own survival: not just food, but also oxygen.

Videos:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8iNhxxPzkg&list=WL&index=82&t=0s
             https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg1Nt7VSSw8&list=WL&index=83&t=34s