What is Biodiversity?
Given the increasing urgency to address climate change and the focus on our journey towards carbon neutral cleaning, we at EC30 like to stay informed about the state of the world around us. Our latest topic is the focus of a recent United Nations convention – biodiversity.
From October 11-19, the UN Biodiversity Conference in Kunming, China, provided the global community with further opportunities to galvanize efforts at all levels to build a better future in harmony with nature. Countries were urged to put their names on a biodiversity agreement similar to what the Paris climate accord has done for climate change.
Biodiversity is the variety of all living things on Earth, and how they fit together in the web of life, bringing oxygen, water, food and countless other benefits. It’s often measured as the species count in a given area, be it a single tree, an ecosystem, a landscape or region, or the planet as a whole.
While the world's biodiversity is facing challenges, thankfully there are some measures that can be taken to restore some of the ecosystem. For example, in urban areas, city infrastructure can allow for planting of bee-friendly foliage, as well as the creation of urban woodland and other wildlife habitats in parks, schools and other public spaces.
Photo by UNEP / Duncan Moore
Degraded and disused farmland can be ideal for forest restoration and increased biodiversity, which can also mean nurturing patches of forest and woodland in high-traffic areas. At EC30 we feel it’s important to do our part to offset the CO2 we create by finding the right partners to reduce our carbon footprint. Which is why we partner with the Arbor Day Foundation to purchase carbon reforestation credits. The Arbor Day Foundation currently works to reforest one of the most critical wetland resources in North America, the Mississippi Alluvial Valley.
MAV is a vital habitat for migratory birds and numerous threatened and endangered plant and animal species. Originally the area was covered with 24 million acres of forestland, but currently less than 5 million acres remain forested due to agricultural conversion, which has negatively affected the ecosystem. Our credits support biodiversity efforts to protect native landscapes and species throughout this affected area and beyond. Learn more about our partnership here.
For every EC30 purchase made, we’ll pay it forward by planting one tree (or more!) in an area affected by deforestation. Together, we can make a difference.