Humans Are Speeding Extinction and Altering the Natural World at an ‘Unprecedented’ Pace
by Brad Plumer @NYTimes
聯合國發佈的一個針對長達 1500 頁評估報告的摘要五月初在巴黎發表 (報告全文將在今年稍晚發佈)，該報告由世界上百名專家匯總上千科學研究而成，揭示了當前世界生態的面臨的危機已經達到威脅人類生存的程度，并呼籲世界各國政府合作應對、進行傷害管控。
人類改變自然環境的速度已經達到前所未有的的速度，植物和動物數量已經下降了 20%， 其中大多數是在最近一個世紀內發生。
In most major land habitats, from the savannas of Africa to the rain forests of South America, the average abundance of native plant and animal life has fallen by 20 percent or more, mainly over the past century.
人類對自然環境的破壞、加上氣候暖化的影響，如果各國政府不加大環境保護措施，專家預計生物多樣性的下降會不斷加快。
As a result, biodiversity loss is projected to accelerate through 2050, particularly in the tropics, unless countries drastically step up their conservation efforts.
這個報告並明確的將生物多樣性的下降和確保人類食物來源穩定、乾淨水源等人類生存需求做了連接，不管富國還是窮國都會受其所害。
“But this report makes clear the links between biodiversity and nature and things like food security and clean water in both rich and poor countries.”
簡單的環境政策已經遠遠不夠，政府現在必須將生物多樣性考量和公共健康、人權等議題放在同一個高度進行政策規劃。
“It’s no longer enough to focus just on environmental policy,” said Sandra M. Díaz, a lead author of the study and an ecologist at the National University of Córdoba in Argentina. “We need to build biodiversity considerations into trade and infrastructure decisions, the way that health or human rights are built into every aspect of social and economic decision-making.”
就算以最樂觀的預估，各國最多也只能降低在 2050 前生物多樣性下降的速度，而不能停止它下降。現在能做的真的只是傷害管控 (damage control)、而不是預防。
Yet even in the new report’s most optimistic scenario, through 2050 the world’s nations would only slow the decline of biodiversity — not stop it.