This paper, Biodiversity Loss, Development Crisis?, mainstreams biodiversity loss in countries' development issues and raises the attention for people to require much more coordinated thinking and action than has happened to date. It is time for the development community to step up to this challenge and engage in the debate.
Why does it matter? Because humanity depends on the goods and services generated by nature, and the ability of nature to deliver these goods and services over the long term is underpinned by biodiversity. What’s more, poor people are particularly dependent on biodiversity — both for their livelihoods and their ability to withstand climate change and other threats — so they are hardest hit by its loss, especially when coupled with climate change.