Is our species already the “walking dead”? According to a report authored by scientists
from Stanford University, Berkeley, Princeton and UNAM University, we are likely facing
the sixth mass extinction in our planet's history.
This beautiful planet where we live has been around about 4.5 billion years, and, in those
years, it has faced five mass extinctions thus far. The last one was about 65 million
years ago when the dinosaurs disappeared. All of the previous mass extinctions have
been caused by natural phenomena, like meteors and volcanic eruptions.
But, it now looks like we are facing what could be the sixth mass extinction, and, unlike
the previous five, this one is entirely man-made — caused by human activities like deforestation
and overfishing. Species are disappearing and going extinct forever at a rate of 1,000
to 10,000 times faster than normal.
And the experts think this will affect humans as well. They pointed out that, “using extremely
conservative assumptions” which “likely underestimate”…”underestimate the [actual]
severity of the extinction crisis…, [t]hese estimates reveal an exceptionally rapid loss
of biodiversity over the last few centuries, indicating that a sixth mass extinction is
already under way.” They repeated, “we can confidently conclude that modern extinction
rates are exceptionally high, that they are increasing, and that they suggest a mass extinction
[is] under way — the sixth of its kind in Earth’s 4.5 billion years of history.”
I can see how human activities like leveling forests and overfishing are causing species
to go extinct. But in my selfish survival mode — in my selfish survival mind — I
could think, while this is a terrible thing, it’s not going to directly affect humans,
is it? If there are no more rhinos or no more kangaroos, that’s a terrible thing.
But it’s not like that would affect me personally, my way of life, right? But, it’s not like that.
As the scientists behind this study point out, “The problem is that our environment
is like a brick wall. It will hold if you pull [out] individual bricks, but eventually
it [just takes] one to make [everything] fall apart.” Biodiversity provides a lot of critical
functions that we don’t even think about — from cleaning up the water and air, to
bees and other animals and birds pollinating plants.
But I do hope we can avoid this tragedy, and so do the authors. But, they warn, “Averting
a dramatic decay of biodiversity and the subsequent loss of ecosystem services is still possible
through intensified conservation efforts, but that window of opportunity is rapidly closing."
As Dr. Anthony Barnosky, a scientist from U.C. Berkeley who worked on this study, pointed
out, “whatever we decide to do in next 10 to 15 years will decide the
future of biodiversity on Earth.”
Such a narrow 10 to 15 year window to get this right. Should we wait until year 9 or
year 14 to get our act together? Obviously not. This is an urgent matter. Action on a
massive scale is needed now. The one bit of good news is that there’s actually something
very practical and easy that we can all do right now in our personal lives. Specifically,
the scientists behind this report ask that you do the following:
Number 1: Reduce your carbon footprint.
Number 2: Don’t buy products from endangered species (that’s pretty obvious).
Number 3: The author says, “Eat less meat — 40% of the Earth is…under cultivation,
and if the lands used to feed livestock were used to [grow] crops for people, there would
be 50 to 70% more calories available for humans to eat, which is enough to feed [one] additional
billion people. It would eliminate the need to clear natural ecosystems like rainforests
for farmland[s].”
That’s right! Livestock. Meat, dairy and other animal products.
According to the United Nations’ 2006 report Livestock’s Long Shadow, “the livestock
sector may well be the leading player in the reduction of biodiversity, since it is the
major driver of deforestation, as well as one of the leading drivers of land degradation,
pollution, climate change, overfishing, sedimentation of coastal areas and facilitation [of invasions]
by alien species.” They also say the following: “livestock production accounts for 70 percent
of all agricultural land and 30 percent of [all of] the land surface [on] the planet.”
Is it really worth sacrificing our planet for our palate pleasure? Speaking of sacrificing,
don’t forget the health aspects. Is it also worth sacrificing our health for our old habits
of eating these foods? I’m a physician and I both eat and recommend a plant-based vegan
diet. Protein is abundant in plant foods, and without all the problematic aspects of
animal foods, which include increased risk of cardiovascular disease, certain cancers,
among many other health problems.
And speaking of sacrificing, we don’t deserve to shield ourselves from the suffering of
the animals behind our food choices. Even if I’m not directly killing animals, when
I pay for animal products at a restaurant or at a store, I’m indirectly paying for
someone else to inflict harm and suffering on animals on my behalf. Animals are being
killed by the billions in horrible conditions, after enduring horrible lives — just because
we breed them into existence for a life of misery —
just so we can eat their flesh and secretions.
Let’s not sacrifice our planet to eat something that’s unhealthy, unnecessary and needlessly
inflicts immense suffering and terror upon billions of sentient animals. If you’re
not doing so already, I urge you to leave animals and animal products off of your plates
forever – for your own health, for the planet’s survival, and for the animals.
Thank you very much.