- Species Threats
- Habitat Loss
- Human - Animal Conflict
- Unsustainable Trade
- Climate Change
- Bycatch
- Invasive Species
- Pollution
- Impacts of Climate Change
- Rising temperatures
- Weather chaos
- Nature at risk
- People at risk
- What's the cause?
- Culprit Coal
- Main polluters
- Wasting energy
- Transport
- Heating & cooling
- Answer the Sceptics
- Forest Problems
- Illegal logging
- Forest fires
- Forest conversion
- Climate Change
- Marine Problems
- Poorly managed fishing
- Inadequate protection
- Tourist developments
- Shipping
- Oil & gas
- Pollution
- Aquaculture
- Climate change
- Freshwater Threats
- Thirsty crops
- Infrastructure
- River decline
- Species loss
2050 Footprint Goal
By 2050, humanity’s global footprint stays within the Earth’s capacity to sustain life and the natural resources of our planet are shared equitably
2050 Biodiversity Goal
By 2050, the integrity of the most outstanding natural places on Earth is conserved, contributing to a more secure and sustainable future for all
WWF’s priority places and species face a range of direct and indirect threats.
These include- clearing of land for agriculture (eg habitat loss, thirsty crops, forest conversion, illegal logging)
- building of roads and houses (habitat loss, dams etc)
- introduction of invasive species
- mass tourism (eg coastal developments)
- wildlife trade
- pollution (in marine environments, impacting species)
- climate change (on species, forests, marine environments)
Tackling the drivers behind the threats
However, adressing the threats alone is not enough to conserve biodiversity and reduce humanity’s ecological footprint.We also need to tackle the drivers behind the threats... the social, economic, and political reasons why these threats exist in the first place.
There are many such drivers. And they are complex. And they are interlinked.
There are 5 (listed below) that are particularly relevant at the global level to natural resource overexploitation, pollution, and climate change.
It is these 5 that play a vital role in achieving WWF’s twin goals of
- conserving biodiversity and
- reducing humanity’s ecological footprint.
Drivers in action
It’s easy to see how, for example, a huge tourism resort could threaten an as yet undeveloped coastline, or how poaching is a threat to tigers.
WWF and many other groups have had much success in conserving particular places and species by fighting inappropriate and even illegal developments and activities such as these.
But to ensure long-term biodiversity conservation and sustainable footprints, we need to go to the root of the threat: the factors that currently favour or allow damaging or unsustainable activities.
In the case of the resort, for example,
- Is the local or national government prioritizing short-term economic development at the expense of long-term, sustainable development?
- Will tomorrow’s tourists prefer mass tourism over more eco-friendly options?
- Are investors supporting the resort for short-term profits?
- Are national laws not strong enough to protect important natural areas?
- Do tour operators not have adequate standards to ensure their activities are not damaging the environment?
