3 October 2005

You are in : SciDev.Net Home > Regional Gateways > Sub-Saharan Africa >
Features

Our full range of news,
views and information from around the
globe

back
to features

print format

email article

comment

Should conservation be driven by
finance?

To save or not to save? The Basking
Malachite Damselfly is threatened by cattle farming in
Africa

29
September 2005
Source:

Since the late 1980s, conservation efforts have focused on
biodiversity 'hotspots' — regions that are home to many species at
risk of extinction. But some conservationists now believe this
approach is misguided.

In this article in Nature, Lucy Odling-Smee reports on
increasing evidence that efforts to slow or halt the loss of
biodiversity would be more effective if driven by financial
interest.

Natural ecosystems provide many economically valuable goods and
services such as water, plant ingredients for medicines, and
defences against natural disasters. This year's UN Millennium
Ecosystem Assessment found that most of these services are being
quickly degraded.

A new approach could prioritise preserving areas that offer
financial benefits. This seems to be the way most scientists are now
heading, says Odling-Smee.

But it will not be simple, she cautions. For example, preserving
wetlands would benefit the world as a whole but could mean economic
disaster for local farmers.
Link to full article in Nature

Related
SciDev.Net articles:
How
biodiversity loss affects the health of ecosystems

Photo credit:
IUCN

Dossiers:
Biodiversity

back to features

To the top

print format

email
article

comment

Home | Editorial | News | Features | Opinion | Regional Gateways | Dossiers | Links | Letters

About Us | Contact Us | About This Site | Register Now | Legal Notices