Earth species are dying out faster than ever before, according to a UN report.  It is a global issue in which our daily lives are directly affected.  Experts have been raising the concept of “sixth mass extinction”, with up to one million species disappearing in the coming decade.  The concept is built on more than mere theories--human activity has degraded three-quarters of the world’s land surface and two-thirds of marine environments.  According to WWF, wildlife has already declined by as much as 60 per cent since 1970, indicating that nature as well as we, humans, are under the threat.

To gain access to food, clean water resources, energy and medicine, maintaining biodiversity is of fundamental importance.  The crisis is not only a crisis of nature, but also affecting the economy, security and society.  It is particularly acute for the quarter of the global population that earn a living through agriculture and fisheries. Farmers and the farm workers, however, are already suffering from the consequences of extreme climate change, including soil degradation, desertification, toxic pesticide residues, soil salinization and soil erosion.

The first step to make a change is to alter the way of farming and how we produce our food.  Cultivating a single crop in vast areas will reduce biodiversity and destroy the local ecosystem, leading to the extinction of both animal and plant species. Reintroducing crop diversity and sustainable farming methods will bring long-term positive impacts. There are many different ways to do so, for instance, planting trees to act as shade over sun-sensitive crops saves water and helps local ecosystems flourish. 

Fairtrade is a choice for nature and ensures that the way of farming safeguards both humans and the environment.  Fairtrade’s environmental standards prohibit cutting down protected forest in exchange of  more crop plantations.  Deforestation, a major problem in much of West Africa, is mainly caused by cocoa production. If cocoa farmers were able to earn a decent income by creating more from their existing plots, the destruction of irreplaceable woodland will be reduced.

Source >> Worried about wildlife? Sustainable agriculture could be the answer