International Relations and the Environment

Answer

Air, water, shifting soil, and migratory animals cross national borders. Because of this, one country alone cannot fully solve many environmental problems. Cooperation at local, national, and internat…

Answer

About 80% of Earth's terrestrial biodiversity is found in developing countries. Many forests, wildlife species, and ecosystems are located there, so their protection is crucial for the planet as a who…

Answer

Rainforests cover only 6% of Earth's land surface but contain over 50% of global biodiversity. They support an extremely large number of plant and animal species, many of which live nowhere else.

Answer

Rainforests absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide and release oxygen through photosynthesis, which gives them the nickname "lungs of the planet." They also store a lot of carbon, so cutting and burni…

Answer

A single rainforest tree may house more than 40 different ant species. This shows how closely organisms are connected in a rainforest and how damage to one tree can affect many other living things.

Answer

Clear cutting and fragmentation destroy habitats, break species interactions, and reduce biodiversity. Rainforest soils are often poor in nutrients, so once the forest is removed, regrowth becomes ver…

Answer

Population growth, poverty, government policies that reward cleared land, logging, mining, road building, cattle pastures, and industrial agriculture all increase deforestation. Consumer demand in wea…

Answer

Brazil's deforestation dropped from 19,508 km² per year to 6,451 km² per year, which is a 67% drop. This major reduction also meant nearly 1 billion tons of CO2 emissions were avoided.