Pages tagged with “ecosystem”

• Wetlands International

  Synchronicity Earth is supporting Wetlands International to carry out a user needs assessment to understand what and how information on wetlands can be better shared, stored and managed. This initiative is the first stage of a much bigger project, currently known as the Global Wetlands Observation System (GWOS). Information regarding the world’s wetlands is widely dispersed and often lacking. For…

• Why Conservation is Important

  By Henry Ficklin, aged 10. Many animals like the cod, the dodo and the American passenger pigeon used to be plentiful. But now two of these are extinct and the cod is very endangered. This can only be explained by human actions. Humans would use or eat these animals without being worried about conserving them. Numbers declined until they became…

• Exotic Species

  The introduction - intentional or otherwise – of exotic species into freshwater ecosystems can result in localized species extinctions, altering the make-up of the ecosystem and in turn affecting other species.

• SCALE

  Many of the threats facing wildlife and natural ecosystems are simply too large and entrenched to be tackled by any one organisation. Powerful vested interests often stand in the way of environmental progress, and conservation groups are unable to compete directly in terms of resources and influence. The response of conservationists can be described as tactical rather than strategic –…

• Habitat Loss

  Coastal habitats – including coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangroves – are home to 90% of known marine wildlife. They also provide us with the majority of fish catches and play vital roles as buffers against storms and sea level rise, and as stores of carbon.

• Pollution

  There are a great number of substances polluting freshwater systems, many of which come from industrial practices, methods of sanitation and waste management, direct use of water for transportation and sedimentation due to logging.

• Portfolios & Projects

  Our in-house team conducts research and analysis on a number of important themes in global conservation, as well as performing due diligence on charities. This helps us map out where the greatest needs are for conservation, what needs to be done, and the most effective organisations to partner with. This research forms the basis of our portfolios. These are made…

• Overfishing

  Oceanic life starts with the smallest creatures. Microscopic plankton convert sunlight and atmospheric carbon dioxide into oxygen – one species of blue-green algae, Prochlorococcus, is present in such abundance that it produces one out of every five breaths we take. These are scooped up by grazers such as krill, which are then eaten by small baitfish – anchovies, herrings and…

• Palm Oil

  The palm oil boom in South East Asia – 86% of the world’s supply comes from Indonesia and Malaysia – has had significant environmental impacts. Half of new oil palm plantations are established on highly diverse lowland forests in Borneo, Sumatra and Malaysia, causing extinctions and threatening others such as the orangutan. Peatland drainage for oil palm plantations has helped…

• Species

  ‘If the biota, in the course of aeons, has built something we like but do not understand, then who but a fool would discard seemingly useless parts? To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering’. Aldo Leopold, Round River, 1953 A large proportion of research and financial support for conservation is directed towards ‘charismatic’ species.…

• Oceans

  ‘We have underestimated the overall risk [to the oceans] … the whole of marine degradation is greater than the sum of its parts, and that degradation is now happening at a faster rate than predicted’. IPSO, 2011 Oceans make up over 70% of our planet. They provide many millions of people with food and livelihoods, buffer coastal communities against storms…