Biodiversity: Origin, function and threats

Abstract

Even though it has taken us a long time to realize, it has finally become clear that the vast biological capital of the Earth is a wealth which is equally or even more valuable than material and cultural wealth. Yet, it is sadly ironic that the knowledge we are beginning to gain about the planet's biodiversity and its important role in the functioning of the world and our own affairs has come at a time in history when our species is assaulting this biodiversity on all possible fronts. In commemorationof the International Year of Biodiversity 2010, this article explores what biological diversity or biodiversity is and why it is important, what problems it is confronting, the main causes of these problems, and what the average citizen can do about them. The new objectives for 2020 of the Biodiversity Convention include the sustainable management and exploitation of aquatic animal and plant populations, to raise protectedland and coastal areas and to lower pollution levels that are harmful for ecosystems and biodiversity, among others. What is at stake is not only the survival of the variety of organisms on the planet but also the environmental services they perform, which are totally necessary for us, not to mention our own survival as yet another species in the biosphere.