Small actions can lead to great changes
Did you know that humanity has wiped out 60% of animal populations since 1970? It's caused by the razing of wild areas, hunting and intensive farming.
But humanity won't stop. The rapid loss of species we are seeing today is estimated by experts to be between 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate. Between 0.01 and 0.1% of all species will become extinct each year. There are around 2 million different species on our planet left then which means that between 200 and 2,000 extinctions occur every year. And we are responsible for that.
The current extinction crisis is the consequence of many human-induced factors. Some of them include habitat degradation, overexploitation (overfishing and unsustainable agriculture), climate change and pollution, illegal hunting and illegal wildlife trafficking… and unfortunately, the list could go on.
We must do something, otherwise – by 2050 – polar bears, penguins and many other animal species, will be only a far-distant memory. By killing them, we are actually killing ourselves.
However, have you ever thought that we are the problem, and also the potential solution?
Aim for environmentally-friendly habits. Be aware of what you buy, and what you use. Always avoid buying potentially damaging products for the environment: avoid large corporations’ products that involve resources and processes which have a harmful impact on the animals – and especially on the endangered ones.
This also applies to cosmetics: avoid products made by companies that test their products on animals. Remember: we must stop animal testing, they don’t know the answer!
Every small energy-saving change can have a huge impact on the health of threatened animals. Recycle paper and cardboard, plastic, metals, glass and all the rest. Plastic waste is a potential threat to the environment, and this includes its accumulation on the Earth's surface. Besides being a powerful pollutant for the environment as a whole, it can negatively affect wildlife habitat – whether in the ocean or amongst nature.
We have the power to stop animal extinction, and we must act now. Remember that small actions lead to big changes.