requires a huge area of land, not just for grazing but also for producing the food for the animals. The demand for meat is now so high that farmers are running out of space. This had led to calls for widespread vegetarian and veganism programmes. This would also reduce the water shortages, as it can take up to 15 times more water to produce meat rather than vegetables.


A further issue of increasing population sizes is that more land is required to support the extra people. This is land for housing, schools, producing food and running businesses. Unfortunately, in Africa and South America, people and governments have resorted to deforestation to provide this extra space. This directly causes species loss and a reduction in biodiversity. Rain forests and woodlands are natural habitats for thousands of species of plants and animals. In many cases, these are the only areas in which these species can survive. In the Amazon, many species of tree frogs are under threat because of extensive deforestation. Loss of biodiversity can have a detrimental effect on the whole food chain, and governments are only just realising this. Now, complex reintroduction schemes have been developed to help to restore ecosystems to their natural state before human intervention. There are, however, some sceptics of these schemes. Survival techniques are usually passed on from a mother to offspring, and without this it is very difficult to introduce a species and expect it to survive in the wild. This is especially true of cases where animals bred in zoo environments are released into the wild.


In an effort to get international coordination on some of the environmental issues discussed above, the United Nations organised the Copenhagen Summit. The main topic on the agenda was climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions. The summit was designed to create a legally binding agreement to reduce emissions by up to 20% by 2050. However, countries went to the summit with their own targets for reduction of emissions, some as low as 3%. This made negotiations very difficult and tense, and some countries felt they were left out of the decision making processes. The result of the Conference was that delegates, crucially including the USA and China, agreed to ‘take note’ of the Copenhagen Accord, a document acknowledging scientific research and predictions. However, the Accord failed to specify any specific targets or reductions necessary to avert climate chaos. Although there were many criticisms of the Copenhagen Conference, one major success was that the countries agreed on a donation of $100 billion to developing countries to enable them to invest in sustainable technology to facilitate economic growth.


I feel it is the responsibility of governments to integrate environmental conservation tactics into economic policy, as the environment fundamentally facilitates the existence of the economy. Any economy which relies upon, for example, tourism, farming or transport needs to protect the environment in order to allow sustainable economic growth in those sectors. Although there is a huge temptation to make myopic decisions, considering only short-term profit making, governments should be able to see past these benefits and evaluate the bigger picture. Families and firms will not make long term investments themselves, as there is no immediate financial incentive. In a time of recession, firms are trying to survive the next few months, not plan for decades in the future when they may not even be in business. Governments are writing and rewriting policies to help lift the world out of recession. In a time when there is such an appetite for change, it makes common and economic sense to integrate environmental issues now, when voters are more open to new ideas. Although it is important that the economy is not jeopardised by over enthusiastic conservation, it is equally essential that the environment is nurtured to ensure continuing, sustainable economic growth.


Harriet Higgins 39


Foundation Essay


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