Biodiversity: Origin, function and threats Authors Joandomènec Ros DOI: 10.2436/20.1501.02.236 Keywords: biodiversity, ecodiversity, sustainability. Abstract We now know that the enormous biological capital of the Earth is equally to 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 the important role which it plays in the functioning of the world and our own affairs has come at a time in history when our species is attacking this biodiversity. As the opening article of the volume, this paper explores what biological diversity or biodiversity is and why it is important, what problems it faces, the main causes of these problems and what an average citizen can do about them. We need a management and sustainable exploitation of animal and plant populations, an increase of protected areas and a reduction of pollution levels. What is at stake is not only the survival of the variety of organisms on the planet, but also the environmental services they carry out, which are absolutely necessary for us and for our own survival as just another species in the biosphere. Downloads Download data is not yet available. Downloads PDF (Català) Issue Vol. 75 (2025) Section Articles License The intellectual property of the articles belongs to the respective authors. At the time of submitting the articles to Treballs de la Societat Catalana de Biologia, authors accept the following terms: — Authors assign to the SCB (a subsidiary of the Institut d’Estudis Catalans) the rights of reproduction, public communication (including communication through social networks) and distribution of the articles submitted for publication to Treballs de la Societat Catalana de Biologia, in any form and medium, including digital platforms. The Publications Committee reserves the right to accept or refuse submitted articles and the right to make any editorial changes it deems appropriate. If the suggested changes are accepted by authors, they should re-submit the article with such changes. — Authors answer to the SCB for the authorship and originality of submitted articles. In other words, authors assure that submitted articles do not contain fragments of works by other authors or fragments of their own previously published works; that the content of articles is original, and that the copyright of third parties is not infringed upon. Authors accept this responsibility and undertake to hold harmless the SCB for any loss or damage resulting from non-compliance with this obligation. Furthermore, they should include a statement in articles submitted to the journal regarding their responsibility for the content of the articles. — Authors are responsible for obtaining permission for the reproduction of all graphic material included in articles, and they should moreover ensure that images, videos, etc., have been created with the consent of the individuals appearing in them, and that material belonging to third parties is clearly identified and acknowledged as such within the text. Likewise, authors should provide the respective consents and authorisations to the SCB when submitting articles. — The SCB is exempt from any liability arising from the possible infringement of intellectual property rights by authors. In all cases, it undertakes to publish corrections, clarifications, retractions and apologies, if necessary. — Unless otherwise stated in the text or in the graphic material, the contents published in the journal are subject to an Attribution - NonCommercial - NoDerivs 3.0 Spain (by-nc-nd) license from Creative Commons, the full text of which may be consulted at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/es/deed.en. Therefore, the general public is authorised to reproduce, distribute and communicate articles as long as their authorship and publishing entity are acknowledged, and no commercial use is made of them nor derivative work produced from them. — The journal is not responsible for the ideas and opinions expressed by the authors of published articles.
