Environmental Responsibility

In this century the green initiative is widespread, with many organizations coming to the forefront of the media with different tips and ideas on how to be more "earth friendly". The fact remains that human activity is still harming the environment and the organisms that inhabit our planet. Reports from major world organizations are stating the effects that humans are having on a variety of environmental issues, such as biodiversity, global warming, and ecosystem destruction. These problems are real and have lasting consequences that will impact not only our lifetimes, but the lives of our future generations. Why should we take measures to make our world and actions more environmentally responsible? There are many ways to answer this question. In this paper we will discuss a few of the important issues including the state of our planet and how our actions have made a detrimental mark, easy ways to become more enviro-friendly, and how these strategies will help not only our earth but our pockets as well in the long run.

Biodiversity is a term that many people have heard in their lives, mainly in high school environmental science and biology courses. This term is used to describe the vast types of organisms, and the environments in which they form their habitats, that help our planet thrive. While evolution and gradual extinction is indeed part of our planet's history, it is important to realize the harmful impacts that have resulted from the loss of biodiversity in the recent generations. Biodiversity is a crucial aspect of our world. According to an article published last year, 30% of the world's medicine is produced directly from plants and animals, approximately 80 species of plant life make up 90% of

the human food supply, and the decomposing of animals and plant life result in the vitamin

rich soil used to produce crops for food, (Falsetto 2010). Biodiversity also includes our ecosystems which are also crucial to processes that sustain the sustainability of our planet, such as climate control, disease control, air purification, and the availability of natural resources needed to make shelter, fuel, and other building materials, (Falsetto 2010). These facts alone explain why biodiversity is crucial to the life of not only our planet, but the human species. In recent decades human activity has decreased biodiversity at an alarming rate. According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment in 2005 "between 10-30% of mammal, bird, and amphibian species are threatened with extinction, due to human actions", (www.globalissues.org). The World Wildlife Foundation has listed the top ten species to watch in 2010 because of the risk of extinction. These species' include Tigers, Polar Bears, the Pacific Walrus, Magellanic Penguins, Leatherback Turtle, Bluefin Tuna, Mountain Gorilla, Monarch Butterfly, Javan Rhinoceros, and the Giant Panda. Many of these