7 things you can do to make a difference, which also improve your life

"The ongoing sixth mass extinction may be the most serious environmental threat to the persistence of civilization, because it is irreversible. Thousands of populations of critically endangered vertebrate animal species have been lost in a century, indicating that the sixth mass extinction is human caused and accelerating. The acceleration of the extinction crisis is certain because of the still fast growth in human numbers and consumption rates. In addition, species are links in ecosystems, and, as they fall out, the species they interact with are likely to go also. In the regions where disappearing species are concentrated, regional biodiversity collapses are likely occurring. Our results reemphasize the extreme urgency of taking massive global actions to save humanity’s crucial life-support systems." - Gerardo Ceballos, Paul R. Ehrlich, and Peter H. Raven, Proceedings of the Natural Academy of Sciences.

For land vertebrate species alone, 515 species currently face extinction with populations under 1000. Another 388 species have populations under 5000. Data shows that many of these species have lost more than 77% of their populations in the last 100 years, something that researchers estimate would have normally taken 10,000 years at crisis levels. Of the species with fewer than 5000 members remaining, 84% live in the same affected areas as the species with 1000 members remaining. Wildlife scientists are warning that extinctions beget further extinctions. This snowball effect can irreversibly impact all living organisms on earth.

The world is nothing but a tapestry of symbiotic relationships and interdependence's. The documentary "How Wolves Change Rivers" demonstrated the power of trophic cascades, where the re-introduction of wolves into Yellowstone national park actually changed where the water flows were going through a series of trophic cascades.

Today we face the challenge of our species history: the complete and utter collapse of our natural ecosystems. This isn't just about climate change, this is about the coming together of dozens of existential threats to the continued existence of the human race, all coalescing at the same time, largely due to one thing: the way we live our lives.

The good news is, we still have time to reverse this. And many of the actions we need to take actually IMPROVE our lives at the same time. Maybe not in terms of the amount of things we have, but in the quality of the time we enjoy on this earth. It's our duty, our responsibility as not only the cause of this problem, but also as the most powerful species on this planet, to make the changes necessary to preserve our natural ecosystems for the generations to come.

It's easy to point the finger at the Exxon Mobil and Shell of the world and say "see those guys there, they are the bad guys", without understanding that it's our demand that they are supplying. And in the end, history has shown that if there is money to be made, then unchecked capitalism will provide someone to fill that demand. So the ONLY way to solve this is via Death by 1000 cuts. It is by a groundswell of change, which begins at home.

Today I focus on 7 changes that each person can make, which not only make a positive impact but also make our lives better for doing them.

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