ABSTRACT
Scientific assessments of ecological health conducted by the United Nations, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and others paint the same picture: the state of the world’s ecosystems has changed more rapidly in the last 50 years than at any time in human history (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005, 1). Ocean fisheries are collapsing, forests and wetlands are disappearing, and deserts are advancing. A process known as the “sixth mass extinction” is underway, with species going extinct at a rate not seen in 65 million years. The numbers are discouraging.
