Humanity is on the verge of ‘shattering Earth’s natural limits’, say experts in biodiversity warning

Four years of drought, along with deforestation, have turned previously fertile land into a dust bowl in Anjeky Beanatara, Androy, southern Madagascar, February 2022. Photograph: Alkis Konstantinidis/Reuters

Humanity is “on the precipice” of shattering Earth’s limits, and will suffer huge costs if we fail to act on biodiversity loss, experts warn. This week, world leaders meet in Cali, Colombia, for the Cop16 UN biodiversity conference to discuss action on the global crisis. As they prepare for negotiations, scientists and experts around the world have warned that the stakes are high, and there is “no time to waste”.

“We are already locked in for significant damage, and we’re heading in a direction that will see more,” says Tom Oliver, professor of applied ecology at the University of Reading. “I really worry that negative changes could be very rapid.”