Issue 3
Reflect
JAS 2017
III. Reflect
We live in a busy, happening world. News 24x7 is a norm, whether they matter
to us or not. In this section, we reflect on 3 significant news from last quarter.
Be our guest contributor
Email us your perspective on news that inspired, disturbed or perplexed you.
Money
Era of Mass Extinction
An alarming message came out loud in July from scientists, warning us of
something as dire as a mass extinction. From the common barn swallow to the
exotic giraffe, thousands of animal species are declining, a sign that an
irreversible era of mass extinction is underway.
The previous five extinctions were caused by natural phenomena.
Conservatively, scientists estimate that 200 species have become extinct in the past
100 years, while the normal rate of extinction over past two million years has been
of 2 species going extinct, due to evolutionary or other natural reasons.
This, the sixth mass extinction, is caused in large measure by human destruction
of animal habitats - like habitat degradation, pollution and climate change.
Poachers are driving numbers of elephants, pangolins, rhinos, giraffes and other
creatures with body parts valuable on the black market to worryingly low levels.
The global population of people continues to rise, along with our thirst for land
and consumption. All of this is contributing to a rapid decline in wild creatures,
both on land and in the ocean.
Dr. Ehrlich, author of ‘The Population Bomb’ in 1960s that predicted collapse of
humanity due to overpopulation, said, ‘there is only one overall solution, and that
is to reduce the human enterprise. Population growth and increasing
consumption among the rich is driving it.’
Dr. Ceballos who researched this alarming paper highlights the urgency of this
crisis -- and the need for change. "The good news is, we still have time," he said.
"These results show it is time to act. The window of opportunity is small, but we
can still do something to save species and populations."
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