Ive been collecting thoughts from colleagues on the ecological, socioeconomic, cultural and human and ecosystem health problems created, contributed to, by fundamental understandings of policy makers, regulators, and our civilization writ large. Im hoping to summarize what I learn with a synthesis paper in the future.
Dear Steven,
There are many misunderstandings about nature in our communities.
1- Nature is an infinite resource.
2- Nature can treat itself against any problem (self-relief concept)
3- Nature was created to serve unlimited human needs
4- Governments and environmental agencies are exaggerating about nature.
5- Huge corporations intentionally underestimate their negative effects on environment
6- Politics exploit the environmental issues for private interests
7- Limited financing for research on environment protection especially for sustainable energy sources
8- Ecological education is a necessity for all levels
9- Serious measures to mitigate climate change
10- The cumulative problems of urbanization: water and energy saving, forest demolition, municipal and industrial effluents, waste disposal, intensive use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers and air pollution.
Best regards
SM Najim
That species distributions are static - particularly since we regulate our use of species (e.g. fishing) according to jurisdictional boundaries. Climate change is influencing where species prefer to live (i.e. they are shifting their 'normal' range), but our laws don't take this into account. This presents a huge problem when species shift across national borders! The management of species in protected areas is also being challenged by the same problem.
The Aral Sea ecological and socioeconomic Disaster undoubtedly is result of one of 10 biggest misunderstandings of nature by humans. The main misunderstanding was the expanding of irrigated agriculture that has substantially reduced river flow to this world’s fourth largest terminal water body until 1960s.
Look for details:
1. Micklin F. The Aral Sea Disaster. Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci., 2007; 35:47-72. http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.earth.35.031306.140120;
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aral_Sea.
With best wishes
Bakhtiyor
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