Biodiversity is the diversity of living organisms on Earth, ranging from bacteria and protozoa to flowering plants, insects, birds, fishes, mammals and all other creatures. It also includes the diversity of ecosystems, such as deserts and rainforests. Biodiversity is a key component of the natural world that gives us food, medicines and other vital services, such as cleaning our air and water and stabilizing the climate.
However, the natural environment is in crisis. Up to a million species are threatened with extinction, and many more ecosystems like forests, wetlands and coral reefs have been lost. And the rate of loss is accelerating.
Our planet’s biodiversity is vital to our own survival. Healthy ecosystems provide crucial services, such as pollination for crops, soil fertility and water purification. They are also the source of life-saving medicines, including antibiotics from fungi and painkillers from plant compounds. In addition, forests and wetlands absorb 2.6 billion tonnes of carbon each year, and help regulate the climate.
The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute is a leader in the science of biodiversity, working with partners worldwide to study and protect species and their habitats. Its scientists have developed frameworks that guide conservation efforts, including how to assess and monitor biodiversity at a national or international level.
In December 2022, at a global meeting of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in Montreal, governments reached an agreement to adopt a new framework to address biodiversity loss and restore ecosystems—the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which builds on the historic Paris Climate Agreement of 2015. This new commitment to nature will complement the Paris Agreement on climate change, and work in tandem with other international agreements that safeguard human health and wellbeing.