The Earth
• Forests
Forests is not just made of trees but also animals and micro-organism. Throw into the mix the non-living, abiotic components like soil, climate and water, and take in the complex interrelationships among the organisms and the environment, and we are closer to an actual understanding of this ecosystem.
With one third of the Earth's surface is covered with forests it is no surprise that they are among the most notable storehouses of biological diversity on the planet.
Forests have a variety of uses to humans, including wood from trees, nutrition from animals, grazing, recreation, medicinal plants and so on.
While that may be so, it is important to understand how the disappearing green cover and the resultant threat to habitats and to human life fits into the bigger picture of life on the planet.
The forest is a complex ecosystem - a biological system with distinct, myriad interrelationships of the living part of the environment (plants, animals and micro-organisms) to each other and to the non-living, inorganic or abiotic parts (soil, climate, water, organic debris, rocks).
The complex ecological relationships involving forests could allow humans to benefit from them in a variety of ways. However, a deeper understanding of these relationships is crucial for the development of effective, sustainable forest management and policy options.
• Climate Change
It's nearly impossible to overstate the threat of climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions are rising more rapidly than predicted and consequently the world is warming more quickly.
Global warming will have catastrophic effects such as accelerating sea level rise, droughts, floods, storms and heat waves. These will impact some of the world's poorest and most vulnerable people, disrupting food production, and threatening vitally important species, habitats and ecosystems.
• Water
Oceans cover 71% of our planet’s surface and make up 95% of all the space available to life.
Life began in the
Forests is not just made of trees but also animals and micro-organism. Throw into the mix the non-living, abiotic components like soil, climate and water, and take in the complex interrelationships among the organisms and the environment, and we are closer to an actual understanding of this ecosystem.
With one third of the Earth's surface is covered with forests it is no surprise that they are among the most notable storehouses of biological diversity on the planet.
Forests have a variety of uses to humans, including wood from trees, nutrition from animals, grazing, recreation, medicinal plants and so on.
While that may be so, it is important to understand how the disappearing green cover and the resultant threat to habitats and to human life fits into the bigger picture of life on the planet.
The forest is a complex ecosystem - a biological system with distinct, myriad interrelationships of the living part of the environment (plants, animals and micro-organisms) to each other and to the non-living, inorganic or abiotic parts (soil, climate, water, organic debris, rocks).
The complex ecological relationships involving forests could allow humans to benefit from them in a variety of ways. However, a deeper understanding of these relationships is crucial for the development of effective, sustainable forest management and policy options.
• Climate Change
It's nearly impossible to overstate the threat of climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions are rising more rapidly than predicted and consequently the world is warming more quickly.
Global warming will have catastrophic effects such as accelerating sea level rise, droughts, floods, storms and heat waves. These will impact some of the world's poorest and most vulnerable people, disrupting food production, and threatening vitally important species, habitats and ecosystems.
• Water
Oceans cover 71% of our planet’s surface and make up 95% of all the space available to life.
Life began in the