Wu Guangqiang jw368@163.com MILLIONS of people around China and the rest of the world were totally riveted by the long journey of a herd of 16 wild elephants in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province. For some unknown reason, the elephants left their habitat in Xishuangbanna in March 2020 and traveled 1,300 kilometers across most of the province for 17 months, initially northward, through jungles, cornfields, farmhouses and highways, and eventually they turned back and returned to their habitat. The fate of the herd struck a chord in the hearts of the people who watched closely every move they made via live coverage online and on TV. To ensure their safe migration, tremendous efforts were made by the authorities and common people, involving over 25,000 persons, 973 drone flights and 15,000 vehicles, putting out 180 tons of feed and evacuating 150,000 residents from the areas the herd passed. The entire journey of the elephants and their “stories” along the way intrigued and amused their fans and the trip’s happy ending was met with a sigh of relief from everyone. Just as the rising popular interest in the well-being of wild elephants is a reflection of increasing awareness of the harmonious human-animal coexistence, the successful hosting of the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) is an embodiment of the Chinese Government’s firm commitment to protecting biodiversity. President Xi Jinping announced at the conference, which he attended via video link, that China would invest 1.5 billion yuan (US$233 million) to establish the Kunming Biodiversity Fund to support the protection of biodiversity in developing countries. Biodiversity, first put forward in 1968 by American wildlife biologist Ramond Dasman, refers to the variety of life found in a place on Earth. It is increasingly recognized that biodiversity is closely linked with economic benefits and is the very foundation for the development of human society. The New Nature Economy Report issued by the World Economic Forum in 2020 shows that US$44 trillion of the world’s economic value — over half of the global GDP last year — was moderately or highly dependent on nature. For the majority of people, they have been so accustomed to modern life that they have little knowledge that humans are highly dependent on biological diversity, which is a matter of life and death for humans. Living things provide us with food, fiber, building and other materials. A well-functioning ecosystem offers basic conditions for human survival and protects humans from natural disasters and diseases by regulating climate, floods and pests, etc. When the fragile balance between humans and the ecosystem is disrupted or destroyed, humans’ survival is jeopardized. The loss of biodiversity will destabilize the global economy and the financial system. China is one of the countries with the richest biodiversity. According to statistics, China ranks eighth in biodiversity in the world and first in the Northern Hemisphere, but China is also faced with a severe challenge of biodiversity loss. Of the 640 endangered species listed by a related international convention on trade in endangered species, China alone accounts for about a quarter. As the grave situation of the loss of biodiversity is the consequence of a long-term process in relation with such negative factors as industrialization and urbanization, irrational use of natural resources, single-species cultivation and breeding, and invasion of foreign species, it will take a long time and great effort to curb the process of the loss of diversity and restore healthy biodiversity. China has been making great efforts in this regard. China is one of the first countries to accede to the Convention on Biological Diversity and has ratified two protocols to the convention, and is also one of the largest contributors to the core budget of the conventions and protocols. Among other measures, China has recently set up five national parks to effectively protect endangered species including giant pandas, Asian elephants, tigers and leopards, and preserve important ecosystems such as glaciers and rain forests. Improvement is rapid and visible, one apparent example being the reappearance of numerous wild boar in many parts of the country, including Shenzhen. (The author is an English tutor and freelance writer.) | 