Variety is the spice of life. And it’s how we survive. Biodiversity, the variety of living things in an area, underpins the survival of all species, namely ours, on our planet. It provides food security, fights disease, supports communities, protection from climate change, and has economic benefit. Unfortunately, our planet is suffering from loss of biodiversity at an alarming rate. Despite these benefits, human beings continue to participate in practices that threaten biodiversity. Recently, some key events have occurred that are aimed at moving the needle towards preventing and restoring biodiversity.

Dr. Martell will share her own personal, very recent journey into the biodiversity arena, highlighting a few of the more recent events that have (re)ignited the momentum to stop biodiversity loss. Amidst a backdrop of scorching heatwaves both on land and in the sea, raging wildfires, intense storms and floods, this momentum feels like a spark of hope. Hoping to draw from the experiences and expertise of the audience, a discussion will follow on what is and isn’t being done locally to prevent the loss of and restore biodiversity.