The Conservation Conundrum: On Climate Change and Biodiversity
The UN warns of three big problems for Earth: climate change, environmental pollution, and biodiversity loss. We are warming up our planet by putting too much carbon into the atmosphere while we produce energy, fuel vehicles and run our factories.
To stop this, countries want to do two things: use clean energy from sources like the sun and the wind, and plant more trees to soak up atmospheric carbon. This narrow focus on climate change mitigation by lowering atmospheric carbon—be it from reduced emissions, or increased sequestration—can ironically harm endangered species, destroy natural habitats, and exacerbate biodiversity loss. In this talk, M. D. Madhusudan explored this process, and suggested how we can respond to environmental challenges more holistically.
This lecture was conducted in Kannada.
About the Ecologist
Madhusudan is a conservation scientist, who, for over two decades, studied the interface between people and large wild animals, trained students, published papers, worked with individuals and collectives to mobilise conservation action, and participated in the making of policies striving to reconcile the needs of wildlife and of humans. Along the way, he helped establish, grow and manage Nature Conservation Foundation, a nonprofit that strives for knowledge-based and socially-responsible nature conservation across India. Madhu was recently the Obaid Siddiqi Chair in the History and Culture of Science at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, where he now continues as a Visiting Scientist, documenting the histories of India’s wildlife conservation, as well as of its changing lands and waters.