Biodiversity 101
How Biodiversity Helps
We live with biodiversity everyday but how does biodiversity help us, the ecosystem or others? Few of us give much thought to the many benefits we enjoy from our healthy and diverse ecosystems. Right off, you can think of essential resources that it gives us (food, medicine, clothing etc.) but there are other resources that you might not think of, like diversity in genetics or providing a sustainable future. Below are some examples of how biodiversity helps us day-to-day.
Ecosystem Services
Biodiversity helps us in may ways. For example, trees provide oxygen for us. Fungi recycle dead organisms and turns them into nutrients. Don't forget the meals you eat. All that comes from biodiversity. When you think of pollen it's usually allergies right? And when you think of bees, it's usually stings. But without both of these, there would be no flowers, no honey and most of the plants would wilt as well. These are just some of the services biodiversity does for us.
Medicinal Purposes
Many plants are used in medicine. In fact, their are hundereds of species in Canada alone that are used for medicine. A willow tree's bark contains acetyl salicylic acid, which is commonly referred to as aspirin. It has been used for pain relief for over 2,000 years. Then we have ginseng, which is pretty much used in the whole world. It is known to lower blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Sage, a plant that can grow in places with little soil, is used to cure digestion problems.
For more medicinal plants, visit:
http://webecoist.momtastic.com/2008/09/30/most-powerful-potent-medicinal-medical-plants-in-nature/
http://www.symptomfind.com/health/medicinal-plants-and-their-uses/
Human Needs
Cultural and Spirtual Values
Biodiversity provides us with alot of options for satisfying our needs. Biodiversity is the reason of many jobs like florists and ecotourism guides. Take Alberta's Banff National Park for example. Over 4 million tourists go there each year. With that much visitors, surely there are a ton of jobs. Just imagine what would happen if there was no park there. Canada's economy wouldn't be as good as it is now. Satisfying human needs is a key role of biodiversity.
For many people, biodiversity is inspiration for art. People also have cultural beliefs, particularly the First Nations. An example of cultural values is that in Hinduism, a cow is a symbol of strength, wealth and abundance. First Nations had four sacred herbs and four sacred animals, the four corresponding with the four seasons.
Visit the website below to see some more saced animals:
Visit http://www.biodiversitybc.org/EN/main/why/109.html
for more information