Guest Blogger Maaike van de Graaf wrote an article for us about wildlife conservation and why it is so important.
We bet everyone loves enjoying the beauty of planet earth and spotting wildlife at the most surreal places. Yet, the hard truth is that spotting wildlife has become more and more difficult. Due to climate change, all the ecosystems in our world are in danger. As a result, green and healthy ecosystems can turn into a dry and arid environment where many animals are having a hard time surviving. According to Earth Day Network, humans have impacted 83 percent of Earth’s land surface. This impact has affected many ecosystems, as well as the range in which wildlife used to exist. The only solution to this problem is to take steps to save these animals from extinction. Massive steps! Luckily, there’s wildlife conservation to make this happen.
n this article, we will explain what wildlife conservation means, and share some essential reasons why it’s more important than ever that wildlife conservation exists.
On to a greener world where all animals and human beings can live in pure freedom!
What is wildlife conservation?
Let’s start by explaining what wildlife conservation means. And who else can describe that better than one of our partners? According to Bukit Lawang – Jungle Trekking, wildlife conservation can be described as the preservation and protection of animals, plants, and their habits. Protecting animals, plants, and their habits plays an important role in maintaining the ecological balance and contributes to human quality of life.
Bukit Lawang – Jungle Trekking sees every day how pretty and at the same time, vulnerable our world and animals are. That’s also the reason why they’re always busy protecting the various amount of amazing wildlife in their area, including some endangered species. “It’s our responsibility to control the impacts which come along within working in tourism so that our future generations still will be able to experience all these wonderful things.”
Five reasons why wildlife conservation is important
The huge variety of life on our planet plays an important role in not only the lives of wildlife, but also in the lives of human beings. In the past 40 years, we’ve seen a decline of 60 percent in the population of species. And that does not only mean that our animals are in danger. It also means we are in danger because we need wildlife for our survival and well-being. Time to share five reasons why wildlife conservation should be a priority for all of us.
1. To protect wildlife
The first reason is perhaps the most obvious one when you think about wildlife conservation. One of the main reasons why wildlife conservation is so important is to protect wildlife and stimulate biodiversity. By protecting wildlife, we do not only release animals who are suffering, but we also ensure that no more animals are threatened with extinction. As more and more species face extinction, protecting wildlife by wildlife conservation, is becoming more and more important.
2. Maintain balance in ecosystems and combat climate change
Protecting wildlife not only ensures that animals do not become extinct but also maintains balance in ecosystems. The preservation of wildlife and their habitats helps to prevent ecosystems from being harmed. Healthy and resilient ecosystems have greater potential for combating and adapting to climate change and, consequently, to moderate global warming. They are more resistant to and recover more easily from extreme weather conditions.
3. To preserve the beauty of our world for future generations
Didn’t we at the beginning of this article commit we all love spending some time in nature? If wildlife conservation disappears, our future generations will not have any chance to enjoy our planet earth and see some of the wildlife that exists today. Many wild animals are reducing at an alarming rate due to human activities. A Javan rhino, a mountain gorilla, or a Siberian tiger: these animals are some examples of animals who are in danger. And if we do nothing at all, they will be extinct in a few years, and our future generations will never know about them.
Like Sir David Attenborough says: “The question is, are we happy to suppose that our grandchildren may never be able to see an elephant except in a picture book?”
4. To provide medicines to humans
Wildlife conservation is not only important for our animals and planet earth but also for ourselves. We bet you didn’t know wildlife conservation provides medicines to human beings. Why? For thousands of years, medical specialists have looked to nature when they search for new medicines. Chemicals from nature provide valuable knowledge for research for medical sciences. Yew trimmings, slimy sea snails, and even fungus have helped top scientists find drugs for cancer, high cholesterol, and other diseases. While the amount of wildlife reduces, the number of important medicines do that as well. Now that’s rather shocking during a global pandemic, right?
5. To keep the cultural significance
Human beings love spending time in nature and that makes it that wildlife conservation is not only important for material benefits, but also for how people feel. How many times do people say they are in desperate need of relaxing in nature and recover after a long day of work? Right, Wildlife offers numerous therapeutic benefits. According to research by WFF, most people are drawn to landscapes that are silent, aesthetically appealing, and have a historic significance. Surroundings with landscapes and a large wildlife population serve as valuable spaces for people to interact with wildlife and nature.
How to contribute
You are almost finished reading this blog which means that you know what wildlife conservation is and why it’s more important than ever. Not only for ourselves, but also for your planet. As we shared five reasons with you why wildlife is important, it doesn’t mean there are only five reasons. There are many more reasons why wildlife conservation should be a priority for all of us, we just shared the tip of the iceberg.
You may be wondering how you can contribute to a greener world where wildlife conservation is at the center of attention. Luckily for you, Carmen also wrote a blog about what you can do to be an ethical wildlife tourist. Check it out here and become a green traveler who’s ready to make an ethical choice when it comes to spotting wildlife.
Written by: Maaike van de Graaf
