India’s Independence Day this year comes at the cusp of its prestigious and crucial G-20 presidency. Our real test against time to drive sustainability and make concrete efforts to conserve our biodiversity starts as the working group meetings conclude.
Only 17 countries across the world can truly call themselves megadiverse when it comes to biodiversity. India through its long standing commitment to the protection of species and our ecosystems becomes one of these megadiverse countries.
With three of the world’s 34 “global biodiversity hotspots” - our country accounts for 9 percent of global biodiversity, including some of the world’s richest flora and fauna with about 91,000 species of animals and 45,500 species of plants, making our nation diverse and unique.
However, as we are now the most populous country in the world, the impact of climate change can be seen in the vulnerability we experience today – unbreathable air, declining water availability, sweltering heat waves and wet bulb temperatures are testing human survival. These threats make it crucial to refocus on conservation efforts.
This is needed as climate change and biodiversity are intrinsically linked in the sense that biodiversity is our “natural defence” against climate change.