Currents April 2019 April 2019_Currents web | Page 5

Currents
April 2019
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using nature at a rate that far exceeds its ability to
renew itself, and how nature’s ability to contribute
food and fresh water to a growing human population
is being compromised in every region on earth.
Future generations will likely experience far less
wildlife, said Luthando Dziba, head of conservation
services at South African National Parks, who co-
chaired the section of the IPBES report that focuses
on Africa.
Forests are being felled across
Malaysia, Indonesia and West
Africa to give the world the palm
oil we need for snacks and cos-
metics. Huge swaths of Brazilian
rainforest are being cleared to
make way for soy plantations and
cattle farms, and to feed the tim-
ber industry.
This destruction wrought by
farming threatens the foundations
of our food system. A February
report from the U.N. warned that
the loss of soil, plants, trees and
pollinators such as birds, bats
and bees undermines the world’s
ability to produce food.“The loss
of trees, grasslands and wetlands
is costing the equivalent of about
10 percent of the world’s annual
gross product, driving species
extinctions, intensifying climate
change and pushing the planet
toward a sixth mass species
extinction,” says the report.
Holy Fire
Pope Francis said the recent
spate of hurricanes should
prompt people to understand that
humanity will "go down" if it does
not address climate change and
history will judge those who deny
the science on its causes. "If we
don't turn back, we will go down,"
Even in the red parts of
Florida, people will vote for bond
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