example thesis statement

example thesis statement

The Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity Conservation Efforts

1. Introduction to Climate Change and Biodiversity Conservation

The conservation of global biodiversity is largely being hampered by activities of human populations. Various factors instigated, directly or indirectly, by human activities result in habitat modification and destruction through urbanization, pasture modification, logging, deforestation, conversion of natural landscapes, bushmeat hunting, introduction of exotic species and the development of transport/energy infrastructure. Among those threats, isolation from natural habitats by human-induced pressures can cause an increase in the risk of population extinction, with the nearby possibility of national and global extinctions, through a process fomented by human-induced factors (collectively termed habitat disturbance). Climate change is expected to exacerbate existing pressures, and raise new ones, contributing to biodiversity loss and reducing the benefits that humans gain from the goods and services that the biosphere provides.

Understanding the connection between climate change and biodiversity conservation is paramount, particularly when it comes to identifying the effects of the former on the latter. As shift, shrinkage, and loss of species habitats is a direct result of climate change, conservation strategies must be resilient to these factors, particularly for arboreal mammals which are most affected by habitat disturbances. Both habitat loss and habitat degradation can potentially cause local extinctions, though only the former has proven to be a likely cause of global extinction of other terrestrial vertebrate species. It is then critical to explicitly examine what, if any, effect climate change has on conservation efforts, and the status of wildlife protected areas. Conservation will become more effective if we know how climate change is affecting the components of biological diversity, and how this differs between contrasting protected area networks.

2. The Interconnectedness of Climate Change and Biodiversity Loss

As one example, rising temperatures have led to an increase in mountain pine beetle populations that threaten the lodgepole pine forests in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Jasper National Park, Canada. This is not just a mere population increase of the beetle, but the loss of the pine forest will have cascading impacts on the beaver and grizzly bear populations that make their homes in this exquisite landscape. Coastal zones in general, and coral reefs in particular, are recognized as highly threatened ecosystems because of the combined action of climate change factors. The protection of these resources will be lost and affected by the synergic effects of climate change and biodiversity loss. It is clear that human society is facing multiple and cascading threats from climate change and loss of biodiversity. These two threats are interconnected, and this interconnectedness provides the reason for them to be addressed together. There is ample empirical evidence showing how these two threats are mutually exacerbated and that concomitant activities to mitigate these threats are undertaken to have advantage.

Climate change and loss of biodiversity are considered two of the most severe environmental issues of the present era. Climate change affects all aspects of life on Earth, from ecosystems and habitats to deeply rooted genetic compositions of organisms. While climate change can have direct effects on biological organisms, such as extinction by extreme events, it more often generates indirect effects. A majority of published studies cite climate change as the main catalyst for the ongoing sixth mass extinction, classified as the first global mass extinction across a diverse range of ecosystems.

3. Challenges and Opportunities for Conservation Strategies in a Changing Climate

That said, climate (off of timescales unfamiliar to humans) will change – it certainly has at numerous times in the evolutionary past, and it will perhaps continue long into the future, with or without the influence of human activities. As a result, however, despite the numerous challenges that conservation faces in the climate change arena, climate change has presented an opportunity for a long overdue paradigm shift in how conservation theory is shaped and applied. In fact, climate change has brought about a state of the world that essentially requires all conservation to be adaptive in nature, necessitating a transition in five main areas: 1) philosophically (from a focus on prevention to a focus on proactive integrative approaches that can handle dynamic changes), 2) scientifically (from a reactive to proactive management orientation through scenario planning and rapid prediction development), 3) analytically (from decision-tree and cost-effectiveness planning to real-options and robust decision-making, and efficiency versus learning), 4) action-wise (from an emphasis on conventional practices to innovative integrative landscape, conservation management, and policy approaches, with increased sociopolitical engagement), and 5) socio-politically (from static conservation to futurist solutions ensuring biodiversity and human well-being are conserved and/or restored).

Efforts to conserve biodiversity are taking place within an ever-evolving social and environmental system, but are almost always designed based on historical biotic patterns and environmental processes. In a world affected by climate change, conservation is challenged to implement robust and climate-smart solutions in order to continue meeting its primary goal of managing for sustainable ecosystem services and wildlife while maintaining ecological integrity and evolutionary processes. In fact, climate change is considered one of the greatest threats to conservation, largely because the size, scale, and speed of impacts far surpass what can generally be mitigated via traditional conservation intervention options such as population establishment or translocation, land and water protection, and/or habitat and species management or restoration.

4. Case Studies and Best Practices in Climate-Resilient Conservation Efforts

For starters, the Mamanuca Islands, Fiji, serve as an early example of conservation initiatives designed to address the potential human displacement stemming from climate displacement. Habitat MATTERS is a web-based platform designed to address the uncertainty of climate change scenarios for policymakers. The Australian Marine Conservation Society asserts the importance of ecological resilience to confront climate change in the context of the Great Barrier Reef – which involves spatial prioritization for additional protective effort, the use of key ecological attributes to inform this process, and the application of the range of options available to different pieces of the GBR. A case study from California is a more traditional spatial prioritization of land protection for conservation objectives with climate change-related refinements, thereby lacking details on community outreach or the integration of other ecological and economic data on planning. The application of the “climate-linked ecological portfolio” concept of rotational adaptation is part of an effort to ensure the sustainability of conservation programs in the Kailua, Hawaii Watershed.

Below are a number of case studies and best practices related to climate-resilient conservation efforts. These case studies are not only unique and relevant approaches to tackling climate change-related challenges to conservation; they also highlight the need to diversify our conservation strategies in the face of such challenges. By examining these case studies against the existing scientific literature, we are better able to present solid, informed recommendations in summarizing this overall review for best practices in climate-resilient conservation efforts.

5. Conclusion and Recommendations for Future Research and Action

Second, the multitude of pathways through which biodiversity conservation and climate change interact highlights the rich variety of factors that need to be considered in effective, well-targeted conservation approaches. It accentuates the robust conclusion that climate goals, as set out in the Paris Agreement, cannot be met without efforts to conserve the planet’s biodiversity, as well as the provision of untold dimensions and benefits for human existence – via strategies like climate-proof community conservation, reducing risk in an uncertain, rapidly changing world and the fostering of climate-resilient, living landscapes. The interaction between conservation, climate and biodiversity remains an area of ongoing interest, and momentum to expand and deepen knowledge in this area is required. Several interesting avenues open up for future research: First, to investigate the implications of the mutually-imaging interactions of climate change and biodiversity loss. Second, to explore the policy implications of conserving for and adding to resilient nature. And third, to put into practice the priorities and findings that this review has suggested. Long-running, real-world case studies would serve to shed empirically based light on whether ongoing effort to maintain nature, structure climate change resilience at all scales can deliver policy-effective results. As a result, research is most assuredly needed; not just to make up for an obvious absence in the literature, but for the betterment of our societies and the health of our planet.

This review has synthesized the state-of-the-art on the relationship between climate change and biodiversity conservation within the context of the general research questions. As such, we have established the necessity for effective biodiversity conservation within a rapidly changing climate and demonstrated the profound influence of climate change upon the implementation and output of biodiversity conservation measures. The answer to the first research question leads to one conclusion: attention to the interplay between conservation and climate change persists, identifying possibilities and limitations imposed by non-stationarity for dynamic conservation practices adapted to change.