In this blog post, we examine why biodiversity is essential for the sustainability of humanity and the Earth’s ecosystem, analyzing the reasons for its preservation and its importance.
Biodiversity originally referred to the variety of species living in a given area. Today, however, the concept has expanded to encompass not only species diversity but also the genetic diversity within each species and the diversity of the ecosystems in which organisms live. This expansion is not merely academic; it is deeply connected to the diverse benefits biodiversity provides to both humanity and nature. Recently, the value of biodiversity has gained significant attention, particularly as its role in maintaining ecosystems and delivering numerous benefits to humanity has been highlighted.
The most fundamental value of biodiversity lies in its ecological services. Organisms possess such immense power to regulate and maintain the environment that they are often called the engineers of ecosystems. Consider forests, for example. Trees create cool shade and draw water from the ground through their roots, providing an appropriate environment for diverse species to inhabit. When forests disappear, the ability to regulate water distribution declines, leading to flooding during the rainy season and completely dried-out soil during the dry season. This causes the habitat environment to change drastically, ultimately leading to the disappearance of a significant number of species. Thus, the trees, water, soil, and diverse living organisms that form the forest play a crucial role in regulating and maintaining the ecosystem environment by forming an organic relationship with each other.
Moreover, biodiversity holds immense economic value. A prime example is pharmaceutical development. Among the countless plants existing in nature, humanity has utilized approximately 20,000 species as medicinal resources. Considering that only about 100 species have had specific medicinal components extracted and commercialized, the potential value held by all plants is beyond imagination. Research showing that anticancer substances can be extracted from sources like the wings of the swallowtail butterfly and the legs of stag beetles further underscores the value of biodiversity. As seen in the extraction of approximately 3,000 antibiotics, including penicillin and mycin, from wild microorganisms, animals and microbes also yield immense economic benefits. Beyond pharmaceutical development, diverse organisms are utilized in the creation of products like cosmetics and contribute to value creation through ecotourism.
Biodiversity also holds profound academic significance. For instance, Charles Robert Darwin traced the evolutionary journey of the intricate human eye by comparing the varied eyes of existing animals. According to him, the human eye evolved from primitive light-sensing cells found in jellyfish. Initially, it used a primitive, concave eye shape, like that of a starfish, capable of detecting the direction of light. It then evolved through an early lens-like form that increased light reception and sensitivity, eventually becoming the modern eye that provides clear images. As this example shows, all biological species possess unique morphological characteristics that provide crucial information for tracing the course of biological evolution. Beyond morphological traits, comparative studies of the unique physiological and genetic characteristics possessed by each species enable a deeper understanding of organisms. This accumulated knowledge forms the foundation of today’s rapidly advancing life sciences.
Thus, humanity has derived infinite ecological and economic benefits from biological diversity and built the foundation for scientific advancement. The recent significant decline in biodiversity due to rapid climate change, industrialization, and urbanization-driven destruction of nature is deeply concerning. This loss of biodiversity does not merely signify the extinction of species; it also threatens the collapse of ecosystem functions and poses a major risk to human sustainability. Therefore, urgent measures for ecosystem conservation must be implemented to curb this decline. Simultaneously, research institutions dedicated to biodiversity conservation should be established, and a system for training specialized personnel must be developed. This will enable a deeper understanding of the value of biodiversity and contribute to preserving healthy ecosystems for future generations.
