ABSTRACT
Forests are beneficial to human survival in many ways. However, mankind fell trees to satisfy a temporary need in support of their livelihood whereby resulting in soil erosion, environmental destruction as well as creating a negative impact on the eco-system. Such behaviours, which disregard the future, can be found both in China and in other countries, and in olden as well as modern times. This article, which is drawn from research and investigations carried out by scholars and experts, reveals that the destruction of forests on Easter Island in the past had led to the fall of its civilization. Apart from the commonly known fact about making ropes from trees to erect Moai statues and using wood as fuel, the pursuit of new hope and foreign trade and the making of catamarans for long-term sailing like other Polynesian islanders required the felling of a lot of trees. This resulted in the rapid depletion of the forests which was a crucial factor leading to the complete destruction of the civilization there. The destruction of civilization on Easter Island is not a remote incident that we can ignore, as Mother Earth is facing a similar problem today. The importance of forest preservation concerns not just the living environment, but also addresses the key issue of whether humanity can live in harmony with the Earth.
