Countdown to 2010

As you sit down to make your New Year’s resolutions for 2009, remember to keep 2010 in mind. No, we don’t mean training for the Vancouver Olympics, we’re thinking bigger. In addition to marking the first time that Canada has hosted the Olympic Games since 1988, 2010 represents the culmination of a global effort to significantly reduce the loss of biodiversity on our planet. With the world watching Canada in 2010, we all have a responsibility to preserve our renowned natural resources.

What is biodiversity?

According to Environment Canada, “Biodiversity refers to the variety of life on Earth. It encompasses the wide array of ecosystems, ecological processes, species and genes that contribute to human health and well-being.”

What’s so special about 2010?

Olympics aside, 2010 represents a target date for governments and organizations worldwide to save biodiversity. The idea was first raised in 2001 by Heads of State of the European Union as part of a sustainable EU strategy. In 2007, the 2010 targets were fully integrated into the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals. The United Nations has also declared 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity.

Why is biodiversity important?

Biodiversity contributes to the overall health and well-being of people and the planet. Environment Canada offers the following on the importance of biodiversity:

“Biodiversity is essential to human existence. It plays a significant role in natural processes such as the purification of water and air, pollination, the absorption of carbon by trees and other plant life, renewed oxygen supply, natural pest control, flood and erosion control, and the absorption and detoxification of human and industrial wastes.

Ecosystem processes also create economic benefits. They absorb costs that would otherwise be borne by taxpayers to replace these processes in the absence of healthy, functioning ecosystems.”

What can we do to protect biodiversity in Canada?

One of the greatest threats to biodiversity is habitat loss. Protect habitat and you are protecting biodiversity. No matter where you live or how much space you have, there are things you can do to provide a place for Canada’s wildlife:

For small spaces try container gardening. The variety of birds, butterflies and beneficial insects you attract will convert your porch or balcony to a biodiversity paradise.

For larger spaces, consider the four needs of wildlife — water, food, shelter and space — and choose plants native to your region and reduce or eliminate the use of pesticides.

What else can you do?

Make the Three Rs your mantra! Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Remember to consider all three when considering how your actions and consumption habits impact the environment and biodiversity.   

Want more grow green ideas? Visit CWF’s Wild About Gardening website for tons of tips and tricks to green your garden.

Biodiversity Facts:

• When asked to explain the meaning of "biodiversity", only one in five Canadians (19 per cent) correctly identify it as the "variety of life on Earth." Nearly half (48 per cent) say that they do not know, and a quarter (27 per cent) come up with the wrong answer.
• About 7,000 plant species have been cultivated and collected for food by humans since agriculture began about 12,000 years ago. However, today only about 15 plant species and eight animal species supply 90 per cent of our food.
• Canada's boreal and temperate forests cover nearly half of its landmass, and provide habitat for approximately two-thirds of Canada's 70,000 known wild species of plants, animals and micro-organisms.
• Much of the food we eat depends on the services provided by a diversity of pollinating insects and animals.