Root Causes of Biodiversity Loss

WWF points out that the over-exploitation of fossil fuels - such as coal, gas and oil - is putting the whole of humanity under threat from climate change.

Understanding the social, political and economic factors

Why do countries make policy decisions which impact negatively on biodiversity?

The loss of biodiversity around the globe has been well documented, and immediate causes - such as deforestation - are fairly well understood.

The wrong choices
However, insufficient effort has gone toward understanding the forces that drive individuals and nations to make choices that sometimes run counter to their long-term interests and destroy biodiversity in the process. A complex interplay of factors shapes these choices at all political, social, and economic levels. These factors have attracted less attention because the links to biodiversity loss are harder to establish and because fundamental policy changes are much harder to achieve.

To stem the global loss of biodiversity, it is important that we understand how these various factors influence decisions.

A new framework
After several years of discussion between the WWF Macroeconomics office and representatives of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and other international donor organizations, there is a commitment to draw up a strategic approach to address root causes. The result was the development of an analytical approach, which provides a framework for understanding the underlying socioeconomic and political factors driving biodiversity loss.

A set of 10 case studies carried out in developing and transition countries tested the approach, and helped to point out the failures of unsustainable policies and unintended consequences of otherwise sound policies.

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Analytical Approach