What is Biodiversity?
The word Biodiversity is made from two words biological and diversity. The term biodiversity refers to all the variety of life that is available on earth, such as plants, animals, fungi, and micro-organisms. It is also related to the communities that they form and the habitats.
The formal definition of Biodiversity can be given as the variability among the living organisms from all sources like species of terrestrial, marine, and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes. The diversity that we notice is found in species, between species, and of ecosystems. Biodiversity in the ecosystem is identified as the combination of the life of species living in an ecosystem and their interactions with each other and with the environment that has made Earth a uniquely habitable place for humans and other species.
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History of International Day for Biodiversity (IDB)
The United Nations Conference was organized in 1992 on the topic of Environment and Development that is also known as "The Earth Summit" in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. At that summit, it was decided to make the strategy of sustainable development, and government leaders agreed on a strategy for sustainable development. It was said that sustainable development is a generous method to provide for the needs of the people around the world, and it will ensure that planet Earth is healthy for the future generation. In the Earth Summit, one of the most agreements was the Convention on Biodiversity Day.
This Convention of biodiversity came into action on 29 December 1993. It was celebrated on 22 May 2001. Hence every year, world biodiversity day is celebrated on 22 May. The text of the Convention on Biological Diversity was adopted at the United Nations at a conference in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1992. Every year International Biodiversity Day targets a particular theme and celebrates it accordingly.
How is International Day for Biodiversity Celebrated?
Different types of events are organized on world biodiversity day to make people understand the importance of biodiversity in the whole world. The reason behind celebrating this day is to tell people the role biodiversity will play in the future. The department of the Convention of biological diversity that is part of the United Nations Environmental Programme organizes celebrations every year. Different types of national governments and non-governmental organizations also participate in the celebrations. Activities that took place in the celebration of world biodiversity day include the distribution of various booklets and other educational resources are translated into local languages, movies are also shown on environmental issues and exhibitions or seminars are also organized for students, professionals, and also for the general public.
A lot of information is spread on biodiversity through educational institutes, newspapers, radio, and television. Different programs are presented that are mainly focused on endangered species and their habitat. Different necessary steps are taken collectively, such as planting trees and other plants at several places to help to prevent erosion. Some politicians also give speeches on local environmental issues, competitions for children and young people to take photographs or create artwork centered on the annual theme are also conducted.
Significance of the International Day for Biodiversity
There is a unique connection between nature and human life. Living beings are dependent on healthy, diverse natural systems for our food and health. Therefore 22 May has been selected as the International Biodiversity Day to raise awareness about several biodiversity issues. The first celebration was occurred on 29 December 1993 by the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly. It has been celebrated every year since 2001. Biodiversity boosts the ecosystem. Each species, whether big or small, matters a lot. They have an important role to play in the ecosystem. For example, if there is a large number of plant species, that means there will be a greater variety of crops. Hence diversity in species gives a surety about natural sustainability for all life forms and a healthy ecosystem where mankind can better stand and recover from a variety of disasters.
A healthy ecosystem provides a lot of important things to us such as the formation and protection of soil, protection of water resources, pollution breakdown and recycling, contribution to climate stability and maintenance of ecosystems, etc. It has become very important to preserve and protect biological resources. Some examples of biological resources are food, wood products, ornamental plants, breeding stocks, population reservoirs, diversity in genes, species, and ecosystems. There are social benefits of biological diversity such as research, education, monitoring, recreation, tourism, and cultural values, etc.
The Theme of International Day for Biodiversity
The whole world is totally dependent on healthy ecosystems for their water, food, health medicines, clothes, fuel, etc., in spite of technological advances. Every year international Day for Biodiversity is given a theme to make this day more effective.
“Our Biodiversity, Our Food, Our Health”, is the theme of International Day of Biological Diversity 2019. The main objective of this theme was to spread knowledge and awareness about the dependency of the food system, nutrition, health on biodiversity, and on healthy ecosystems. The theme showed the importance of food and health. It acts as a key catalyst in transforming the system of food and improving human well-being.
The theme of the International Day of Biological Diversity (IDB) 2020 was Our solutions are in nature. The world biodiversity day 2020 theme had the objective of hope, solidarity, and the importance of working together or coming together to make a future of life in harmony with nature. The year 2020 is a year of opportunity reflection and solutions. It is the duty of mankind to make the ecosystem better day by day by using the time to come up, build nations and communities as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. It is necessary to build a global framework that will overcome the loss of biodiversity as it will benefit humans and all life on Earth.
Importance of Biodiversity
The importance of biodiversity in the ecosystem can be understood by the following points.
Biodiversity is important to increase the productivity of the ecosystem as each species in our ecosystem has a specific role to play.
Biological diversity supports a lot of plant species and hence a greater variety of crops are collected.
It is also important for the speedy recovery from natural disasters.
Rich biodiversity is the reason for a healthy ecosystem that provides a number of food resources and medicinal resources and pharmaceutical drugs.
Biodiversity offers environments for recreation and tourism.
Do You Know?
The International Day for Biodiversity 2021 was celebrated virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was also a virtual celebration of Biodiversity day in India. Biodiversity is very important for the proper functioning of our planet. Every culture of the world has recognized the importance of conserving natural resources. Hence we can conclude that biodiversity is the term that specifies the variety of life on Earth and the natural patterns it forms.
The biodiversity that we notice today is the evolution of billions of years of fruits, shaped by natural processes and increasingly, by the influence of humans. It is an integral part of life on which we depend. All species, including humans, are affected by the loss of species diversity hence it is time that we should collectively make efforts to conserve biodiversity.
FAQs on International Biodiversity Day
Q1. How to conserve biodiversity through food?
There are a few small things that we can do from our end in order to conserve biodiversity. These steps would be beneficial in maintaining biodiversity. We can reduce the consumption of meat. Instead of eating meat a lot we can eat and purchase seasonal food. We should buy local foods. Wastage of food is not good for biodiversity. Hence the wastages of food must be reduced. The packaging over food is not healthy from the aspects of conservation of ecosystem. We should use reusable bags or reuse glass jars or containers. Things made from plastic should be completely banned such as straws, coffee cups, glasses, water bottles, etc.
Q2. Which type of biodiversity is most important?
Biodiversity is generally categorized into three levels. These three levels of biodiversity are species diversity, genetic diversity, and ecosystem diversity. The smooth working of these levels creates the complexity of life on Earth. Among them, species diversity is biodiversity at the most basic level. All the species ranging from plants to different microorganisms come under the category of species diversity. It is the most important type of biodiversity. None of the two individuals of the same species can be exactly similar. Hence every species show diversity among itself.
Q3. What is healthy biodiversity?
Biodiversity is related to the vast array of species and plants that populate the Earth, water, and air. The interactions among these species create the ecosystems upon which everything depends. To maintain or create healthy biodiversity, it is important to manage nutrient cycles, no loss of soil, and no accumulation of pollutants. The wild places of earth have been dedicated as natural reserves, global change processes, including climate change, mean that the systemic conditions needed for these places to thrive are being undermined. Biodiversity losses are happened because of processes of urbanization that destroy natural habitats and nutrient cycles. We have to maintain connectivity in all the species of the ecosystem in order to create healthy biodiversity.
