Animal Extinction: Does it matter?

 In 2019 it was reported by the UN that nature is declining at unprecedented speed.  The number of extinct species is alarming, just in the last 10 years animals like the Mauritius turtle-dove and the Pinta Island tortoise have disappeared, and with them 160 more.  We may have not heard about most of them because they are so rare and out of our sight, but that does not mean they aren’t important.  Every single one of them had a function, a purpose, and without them, the balance is lost. So, the question we should ask ourselves is, are they worth saving? Does it matter?  Of course, they are because if these “insignificant” species go extinct, eventually, we will too.

 The World Animal Foundation estimates that by 2025 approximately one-fifth of all animal species may go extinct.   Some of the reasons listed as causes for this problem are pollution, invasive species, climate change, and overpopulation.  Some of them can be controlled and even reversed, but we need to work together to do so.  A solution to the pollution can be living a zero-waste life, but that’s not sustainable for many of us, so we can recycle as much as we can, commute whenever we need to travel, and not be wasteful of our resources. 

 

Another major cause for extinction is invasive species.  They flee the natural habitats because we destroy them, we build and create new habitats for ourselves and in the process destroy theirs.  Some examples of invasive species are Asian Carp, Zebra Mussel, Cane Toad, and the Northern Pacific sea star.  These species reproduce outside of their natural habitats at an incredibly fast pace, causing chaos and destruction, harming the animals that live there.  The only thing we can do to prevent this is to stop destroying their homes and help them find new ones where they won´t harm other animals.

 

A solution that would benefit not only endangered species but also the environment is the help of big corporations.  Capitalism has put the weight on us as individuals to take care of the planet, but even if we all did, the factories and big warehouses would still be doing most of the damage.  That is why they need to come with solutions and ideas to reduce pollution, waste, and all the damage they cause to the environment.  And we, as consumers, need to put pressure on them so will do what is right and help us all in the long run.  Because if we keep doing what we are doing, we won´t have an earth to call home.  “The Report also tells us that it is not too late to make a difference, but only if we start now at every level from local to global,” he said. “Through ‘transformative change’, nature can still be conserved, restored, and used sustainably – this is also key to meeting most other global goals. By transformative change, we mean a fundamental, system-wide reorganization across technological, economic and social factors, including paradigms, goals, and values.”  (UN Sustainable Development Goals, 2019).

 

After reviewing the information, I firmly believe we should all work towards saving the endangered species, we should all put our efforts into making this a better world for all living creature, and we should all realize that if are capable to care about innocent animals what’s stopping to not care about us, as humans. We still have time to act and to care, to stop the otherwise inevitable.  Reflect on your future and present actions and if you think the little actions towards change don’t count, trust me, they do.