“Insects have survived the last five mass extinctions our planet has faced; but this time is different”

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“Insects have survived the last five mass extinctions our planet has faced; but this time is different”

Dave Goulson (born 30 July 1965)  is Professor of Biology (Evolution, Behaviour and Environment) at the University of Sussex. Specializing in the ecology and conservation of insects, particularly bumblebees, Goulson is the author of several books, including Bumblebees: Their Behaviour and Ecology (2003), Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypses (2021), and more than 200 academic articles. In 2006 he founded the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, a charity that aims to reverse the decline in the bumblebee population.

Last May, he dedicated a bit of his time to talk with This is My Earth.

Good morning Dave, and thank you for allowing us to talk for a while about your books and research. Can you tell us why did you choose insects?

Good morning This is My Earth. I don’t know. I was drawn to them. I was fascinated by them from an early age; when I was 5, 6, and 7 years old, I collected caterpillars and kept them in jam jars and plastic boxes. I used to collect lots of them, feed them, and turn them into moths and butterflies. I felt it was very cool. I started collecting butterflies, something I’m a bit embarrassed to say today, as it is not an acceptable hobby anymore, but in the late 70s, that was a common thing for kids. 

Did you find them fascinating?

Somehow, all this work I put into on them helped me understand them and increased my interest in their existence. I find insects really interesting, and I’ve never grown out of that kind of childish interest; and I’m very thankful for having managed to build my career around my hobby.

Sometimes You have said that one of your goals is to fight children’s fear of insects. How is it going so far?

(Laughing) There’s It’s a long way to go. Well, you know, most people don’t like insects and rarely think about them. If they encounter them, they are usually frightened of them. And I think even the names we’ve got for insects, like bugs or creepy crawlies, don’t seem very attractive. And I think most people associate insects with diseases, and stings and bites, so when something does buzz near them, they try to kill it, which is very sad from my perspective. 

Why is that so?

Most insects don’t come and plan to sting us; most of them live their lives and do their business. And we need them; they do vital things for us, but they are never appreciated for that. So I have a very long way to go persuading everyone to love insects ー which is a bit optimistic at this point ー but I keep trying, and that’s why I’ve written my books and recorded videos about that subject. 

Do you write your books for people who don’t like insects?

Generally speaking, I think people who read my books are already aware of how essential insects are and probably love them too. Those people who would never be going to buy my books are the ones I want to convince about insects. I still don’t know.

Perhaps because there is a very long distance between insects and humans in evolutionary terms and features, we don’t find an easy way to connect with them rely on them. How far apart are we in biological terms?

Our common ancestors are the same, that’s a fact; we just have to go somewhere in the oceans a long way back in time, something like 500 million years ago. But I would say that regardless of how alien and different they may seem to us, all of the creatures on our planet Earth deserve the right to live, whether they do something useful or not.

Most of them were here before us…

Most of them have been here for millions of years, probably a lot longer than we have. I kind of feel we should be more respectful with the rest of life on our planet; just because we have the power to destroy it, surely that doesn’t give us the moral right to kill other creatures or to decide which ones should get go extinct. 

Why in some of your conferences and lectures you have stated that “insects are a book of biodiversity”?

Insects comprise more than two-thirds of all species that we know of and there are suspected to be many millions more, as there are many species on the planet we have not yet been able to identify. In a sense, our planet is essentially the planet of insects. They have been the most successful, dominant life on the planet. An alien visiting would have described Earth as the planet of insects more than a human planet. Insects outnumber humans by a billion to one. However, we humans are doing our best to change that, as numbers of people are rising and number of insects are rapidly decreasing. 

You have been raising awareness about the rapid extinction of insects at an alarming speed in the last century. How did we get here so fast?

Clearly, nobody was planning to get where we are; at least, nobody with a clear mind would have wanted us to be in this climate-crisis situation. Evidence tells us that the human population has grown dramatically in the last century as technology has kept evolving, I believe, as humans, we thought we were invincible. We thought we were so clever that we could find technological fixes to all sorts of problems we were creating with our messy way of progressing. Everything is built as if we can go on forever, which is kind of nuts, as it is very clear that the planet has limits on how many people it can support. We now know that we can’t continue having the lifestyles we’ve been having, especially in the West. But nonetheless, we continue living as if this was possible. Are we really facing that? When will we accept having less? Eating less? That refusal to face facts is a big part of the reason why we are here. 

How should we persuade people about it?

I think we should persuade people to re-evaluate our position in the world. I can blame some of it on religion. In the Bible, it is said that God gave us dominion over the animals to do as we see fit, and well, if you believe that, then basically you might think the planet and its resources are your own, and animals are just there for your benefit. I think this attitude has prevailed for the last 2,000 years, and we somehow need to change that. We are part of nature, and our health is connected to the rest of living things’ health on our planet. 

How fragile are insects in the face of global warming compared to other animals?

It is really hard to generalize because there are so many of them. Some of them are actually thriving, particularly those with fast breathing systems, such as worms, which can take advantage of human civilization and human waste. So insects such as mosquitoes or cockroaches are doing really well, basically because they can breathe fast, they can adapt fast, they can move fast. So they are quite adaptable, and they can develop resistance to pesticides or move north as temperatures get hotter. These examples are a small minority within the insect community. A vast majority of insects are much slower to adapt and to move. For example, bees are really having a hard time. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08lwfx3

Insects have survived the last five mass extinctions our planet has faced, so some of them must be very tough; but this time is different, as the whole climate is changing dramatically fast for them. The main difference now is that insects live in tinier populations, living in the islands of habitat surrounded by all sorts of threats from human civilizations, such as hostile factories, cities, highways… So, once they decide to move gradually towards the North as the temperature gets hotter, they have to face many more threats than in other periods in history. Their challenge now is to move from one safe island to the next, and that’s very difficult for these creatures, so we see lots of insects that are, in fact, stocked and cannot move for their own survival. Climate change is, in a sense, the final straw for lots of species already very exposed to pollution, pesticide exposure, habitat loss, and a bunch of other man-made factors.

What do you mean by the “final straw”?

Insects are very adaptable, and they have survived and endured for thousands of years, but many of them won’t be able to cope with what’s coming. We have created a deadly combination of problems. 

Are bumblebees more threatened than the rest of the insects?

It’s hard to compare because we are still learning and discovering lots of new insects. But what we do know is that bumblebees are essentially specialists in living in colder climates. In that sense, they are quite unusual. Most of the insects are much more abundant in the tropics than anywhere else. But bumblebees don’t live in the tropics. Most of them can be found in alpine regions, mountain areas, and even in the Arctic Circle. They are adapted and manage quite well to keep themselves warm in cold weather. But that adaption is not so useful as it warms, and they are literally overheating. They can’t cope with hot weather. All the evidence shows that bumblebees are disappearing from the warmer margins of their ranges. The projections are that many European species of bumblebees will go extinct if we reach two degrees warmer, and that seems quite likely. That means that most bumblebees won’t be able to live in Europe anymore, and there isn’t really anywhere for them to go northwards, so that will be the end for them, unfortunately.

How much time left do we have?

It depends on how fast things warm up. It’s very hard to predict, but we are talking about a small number of decades. 

What is the public’s opinion response to your articles and books, such as Silent Earth, Gardening for Bumblebees or The Garden Jungle?

I think that people who are engaged with this issue are very concerned about it, and many of them get involved and try to do something about it, often small-scale things like turning their gardens into insect-friendly spaces, or they get involved in local campaigns. That is great. Particularly when you explain to them how important insects are and how delicate our situation is, people get worried. But most people haven’t got that message at all. Most people have no idea that insects are really important and that our survival depends on them ー and of course, they don’t read my books.

Is that the main challenge of the environmental movement as a whole?

I think so; we have to become mainstream and persuade the majority of people that the environment matters. It seems obvious to our readers and to us, but somehow we haven’t delivered this message to the majority of the world’s population. They seem busy doing other stuff, thinking of economic growth, paying the bills, and going to watch a football match, and they have absolutely no idea that these huge environmental problems are going to make their life and their children’s lives much harder. I think if people knew that, they would be horrified, and they would do something. But probably, if they hear things like that, they would rather dismiss them; they would not try to listen to these tree-hugger/leftie speeches… and I think it’s absolutely nonsense not to listen to cold facts.

In 2017, I was one of the scientists who signed up for this global letter highlighting all the problems we have created on our planet. Pretty much all the scientists on Earth agree on these issues. We all agree that we have crossed the boundaries of what our planet can support, and catastrophe lies ahead.

And what was the response to that?

Governments paid little attention. And I think these messages are not really delivered to a general audience, so people don’t really get them unless they really try to. 

Being a professor at the University of Sussex, what can you tell us about the response from academia?

My colleagues are very encouraging. Some of them are also interested in insects. My university is pretty strong in its environmental approach, so I feel very comfortable teaching there. However, it is true that, more broadly, I think there are some scientists who don’t really think it’s the role of scientists to get involved in politics. I think this is not the correct approach. If, as a citizen, I see how we are destroying the planet and I want to do something about it, I deserve the right to do so.

Is that something new?

Traditionally scientists have been focused on writing boring papers that are only being read by other scientists, and keep their heads down and not stand up in public. They didn’t talk to the media nor become influential voices in societies. But the world has changed, and I think science needs to change with it.

What about your students? Have you seen any changes in the last years?

Yes, there’s definitely a youth movement; I think there is far more awareness, especially from those under 25 years old. There are organizations and movements such as Extinction Rebellion, Fridays for Future… there are a lot of young people who feel really anxious for their future, as well as angry with us, the old folks, who have made such a mess and don’t seem particularly keen to fix it. We could say that the human race is waking up, but that being said, there are still a lot of young people who are not engaged in the environmental movement. 

How can gardening insects help us heal our broken relationship with nature?

Gardens in urban areas play a crucial role. For example, kids can learn about nature and play with it, so they don’t grow horrified by insects. In my ideal world, kids would grow fond of nature and insects. From early on, children would learn how to grow food and learn about the enemies of nature. I think this basic understanding of how nature works is probably the most important thing we can teach. And yet, in the UK’s education, kids learn very little about it. I would like to see a global city-rewilding strategy combined with a proactive educational system. Part of the problem is that teachers don’t know much about nature. Perhaps we need to offer training opportunities for teachers; maybe we could send them to the fields, to hold insects with their own hands and teach them about biodiversity. That would help to heal our relationship with nature and that of new generations. We are part of nature.

Why would anyone want to create an insect-friendly garden with all the mosquito plagues and oubreaks we are facing in Europe summer after summer?

I think the answer lies within the question: If you build a successful and rich garden in terms of biodiversity, you will see how nature finds its own balance. There are many other insects who love to eat mosquitos, for example. In my case, I grow lots of fruits and vegetables in my garden. I would say we are almost self-sufficient. I don’t use any pesticides, and we do get small outbreaks on the crops, but I don’t spray them, I just wait, and almost every year, within a week or two, they are all eaten by predatory insects and birds, but mainly ladybugs and so on. So it’s all about balance. Most of the pesticides we’ve created are based on the idea that we can fix the unbalance we have made, and we shouldn’t be surprised if, as a result of that, nature adapts and more plagues and problems are being created. 

In the case of mosquitos, they need cold water essentially. So, in your garden, you would need to encourage the insects who actually feed on mosquito larvae, so you won’t get lots of them. I’m afraid there will always be mosquitos though.

It sounds that one of the main problems in our environmental struggle is that we are racing against time. Do we have the same perception of time as an insect?

(Laughing) I haven’t got a clue of what goes on in an insect’s mind and how they perceive time. Probably they are very different from us, as their brains are fundamentally much smaller. I don’t suppose they think about it, although their lives can be very long, even several years. I often wonder if I would be bored spending ten years slowly chewing my way through a tree trunk in total darkness, doing nothing but eat, like a beetle. Do they get bored? Presumably not, but it sounds pretty tedious to me. 

You have mentioned several times how fantastic flower adaptation processes have been throughout history, particularly when finding a way to become more attractive to insects. Should conservationists and biologists grow to become more attractive and adapt to the environment, as flowers do?

Somehow we need to improve. The whole environmental movement needs to be more successful in engaging people. Scientists are often very poor communicators to the general audience, as this is not part of our training. We are used to data, evidence, and writing very dry scientific articles, but nobody teaches us how to engage with the public in a big way. It is also easy to lose people’s interest if you are too doomed and gloomed; some people might be turned off. But maybe that is why I’m talking to This is My Earth now, to reach a bigger audience. We need millions of people. 

What do you think of projects such as This is My Earth?

I do think that we need to set aside much more land for nature to thrive. I’m a big supporter of Edward Wilson’s ideas. I think the whole half-Earth idea is excellent, and it is achievable if we want to. It might sound crazy, but how can we set aside half of the Earth? But actually, if you look at it, we could. So, what This is My Earth is doing is on the right side of things, and we need so much land.

Can you tell us a moment in which you really felt anger recently?

I think one of the moments in which I felt frustrated in recent years was when I started working on pesticides, which was about ten years ago. We published some research showing how some types of pesticides are harmful to bumblebees. We got this huge backlash from this giant chemical industry lobby. They have social-media trolls, and their mission is to carry out personal attacks and spread misinformation. They’ve tried to undermine my credibility as a scientist and destroy my reputation. I’ve never encountered anything like that. I’m used to it now, but it was very nasty, and I was not ready for that.

Can you tell us about a moment of success?

I had a lot of emails from people saying they had read some of my books. People who didn’t know about insects now feel like gardening, stopped using pesticides, and enjoy watching butterflies and bees. It’s beautiful to see you are making connections and making an impact. 

Also, some years ago, in 2016, I started a charity called Bumblebee Conservation Trust. One of the early things we did was restore a wildflower meadow. It was astonishing to see how quickly nature can recover; in just one year, we turned wasted land into an area full of biodiversity with tens of thousands of bumblebees and flowers. 

Are you optimistic about the future?

No. In my last book Silent Earth I dedicate a chapter to talk about what the world will be like in 60 years and I can tell you that the panorama is not very encouraging. But giving up it’s not an option. I’ve got children; I don’t want them to inherit a depleted Earth. So I will do my best. 

Are things really changing?

They do, but the changes are too slow. Look at this absurd war in Ukraine. Who is celebrating it? Fossil-fuel industries. It’s very hard to be optimistic, but we will keep on fighting. Every little action makes a difference.

Thank you very much for your time. 

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TiME ∙ Feb 8

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Endlings: The last Dusky seaside sparrow and Disney

An endling is the last known individual of a species or subspecies. Once the endling dies, the species becomes extinct: The last Dusky seaside sparrow died in 1987 in the Walt Disney Discovery Island

TiME ∙ Feb 7

9 min read

Indigenous people are better at protecting the Amazon’s last carbon sinks

The Amazon’s last carbon sinks are mostly protected by indigenous people, new study finds.

TiME ∙ Feb 1

12 min read

Many celebrations in the world are linked to our relationship with trees

Noga Syon explains why trees are so important to humans in a new opinion article

TiME ∙ Jan 2

14 min read

“We all depend on each other to overcome adversity”

We had the privilege to talk to Tony Hiss, the author of fifteen books, including the award-winning The Experience of Place. He was a staff writer at The New Yorker for more than thirty years, was a visiting scholar at New York University for twenty-five years, and has lectured around the world. 

TiME ∙ Jan 2

15 min read

Playing dice with the universe

Life and animals adapt to new situations. In fact, one of the most memorable scenes in the movie (and the book) Jurassic Park occurred just before the characters learned that the cloned dinosaurs, although all female, had found a way to reproduce. In what later became an iconic phrase, which then turned into a viral…

TiME ∙ Jan 2

18 min read

“Securing lands for conservation is one of the best investments you can do to secure your future and that of your family”

We had the privilege to talk to Margaret Otieno, CEO of our partner organization in Kenya, Wildlife Clubs of Kenya. Margaret has been great in managing and securing the land we've managed to save forever in 2021 in Maasai Mara. She highlights the importance of securing lands for conservation and how securing lands is one of the best investments to secure the future of your beloved ones.

TiME ∙ Dec 6

15 min read

TiME’s education: leading actual change through hope

It almost goes without saying that conservation and environmental education go hand in hand. TiME is leading actual change through hope We want to save endangered species and critical hotspots, and we want more people to care, to pay attention. Especially, we want to continue leading this change in future generations. It is thus not…

TiME ∙ Dec 6

13 min read

“With TiME, children feel the power to make an impact”

Evi Anca is one of our most engaged volunteers. We were so lucky to hold an interview with her in which we discussed climate change, activism and art.

TiME ∙ Dec 6

11 min read

“TiME has the most direct impact I’ve ever experienced in a nonprofit conservation organization”

We are introducing our new Land Conservation Manager, Masters in Conservation Leadership for the University of Cambridge, Gal Zanir.

TiME ∙ Dec 6

18 min read

“Conservation always needs support; we never have a spare hand”

We interviewed Santiago Rosado Hidalgo, a biologist and photographer at the El Silencio reserve in Colombia, and a contributor to This is My Earth.

TiME ∙ Nov 22

1 min read

This QR saves the planet: SCAN IT!

This QR saves the planet: SCAN IT!

TiME ∙ Nov 2

12 min read

The cloud forests of Colombia

Flowers, such as orchids and magnolias, don’t cross most people’s mind when thinking about conservation. It makes sense: we are used to seeing them inside cities, homes, gardens, and at weddings and events, but they are rarely depicted in wilderness photos, which emphasize greenery, desert, or snow much more than vibrant bloom. But these flowers…

TiME ∙ Nov 2

14 min read

“Talking about nature conservation is the same as talking about human conservation”

Would you say you are a committed artist? Is this what is meant by the practice you call “translucency”? Well,  especially in Western societies, it seems like many of us have lost connection with the environment, and with the pandemic, we may have lost track of even one another. “Translucency” is just a word that…

TiME ∙ Nov 2

13 min read

“People die in the name of nature conservation in my immediate surroundings” 

How is your life in South Africa? I am originally from Germany, and living in South Africa has been an adventure. I moved to South Africa just before the COVID-19 pandemic started. I was finishing my training and then I had to move back to Germany and go through quarantine and lockdown. Finally, I’ve managed…

TiME ∙ Nov 2

13 min read

“I want my children to see and enjoy nature, but I’ve seen nature declining everywhere I’ve travelled”

How would you introduce yourself? My name is Jonathan Meyrav, I live in Israel, I’m married with three kids and I’m first and foremost a bird-watcher. I have been bird-watching since I was a child, and birds are my life. For the last 20 years, I have been working with Birdlife Israel, which is part…

TiME ∙ Oct 23

11 min read

What happened to Scarface?: The most famous Jaguar in the world

This is the story of the Famous Jaguar scarface: "The Jaguar has been seen as a spirit companion or "nagual", which will protect humans from evil spirits while moving between the Earth and the spirit realm. As the jaguar is quite at home in the nighttime, it is believed to be part of the underworld; thus, Maya gods with jaguar attributes or garments are underworld gods."

TiME ∙ Oct 2

1 min read

Volunteers meeting – 30 of September

Last 30 of September, TiME’s Israeli volunteers had a get-together in the beautiful Alonei Yitzhak grove. Hopefully more face-to-face meeting will come in the next months in some of the countries of the world where there are This is My Earth‘s volunteers!

TiME ∙ Oct 1

20 min read

“We can share the world more healthily”

We had the privilege to talk to Camille T. Dungy, poet and editor of the bestseller All We Can Save, about nature conservation, poetry and This is My Earth. In your poem “Characteristics of Life,” published in the book All We Can Save, the figure of the poet is presented as a powerful voice that…

TiME ∙ Oct 1

16 min read

“Your donation goes to where it’s needed”

The only nature conservation nonprofit Jordi Vilanova knows in which 100% of your donation goes to where it’s needed is This is My Earth. “We need to integrate all sorts of knowledge,” the PhD student and TiME volunteer say. What brought you to study Ecology and Biology? Ecosystems and animals have always interested me. When…

TiME ∙ Oct 1

22 min read

“La fotografía de la naturaleza tiene que enseñar y despertar curiosidad y compasión por la biodiversidad”

[INTERVIEW IN SPANISH] – Entrevistamos a Santiago Rosado Hidalgo, biólogo y fotógrafo en la reserva El Silencio de Colombia, y colaborador de This is My Earth. Buenos días Santiago, ¿cómo te presentarías? Buenos días, mi nombre es Santiago Rosado Hidalgo, soy un biólogo colombiano y me dedico desde hace años a las estrategias de conservación…

TiME ∙ Oct 1

12 min read

The Cry of the Jocotoco

In 1997, the ornithologist Dr. Robert Ridgley and his scientific team discovered a new species of bird, until then unknown to science. It is a beautiful, long-legged, land-dwelling bird with a distinct call, from which its name, Jocotoco Antpitta, was derived. Deemed Endangered by the IUCN Red List, the Jocotoco is estimated to have only…

TiME ∙ Sep 12

13 min read

“We should let people understand the true cost of their choices because nobody is paying for the disaster that has been caused”

We had the privilege to hold an interview with Amanda Sturgeon, CEO of Built by Nature and contributing author to All We Can Save (allwecansave.earth), with her, we’ve discussed architecture, sustainability solutions and This is My Earth‘s contribution to nature conservation. How do you define yourself? I’m CEO of Built by Nature. I’m an architect,…

TiME ∙ Aug 28

10 min read

Wildlife trafficking is one of the world’s biggest international crimes

Wildlife trafficking is one of the world’s biggest international crimes Opinion column from Noga Syon - September 2022 (Part 2)

TiME ∙ Aug 28

9 min read

The transfer of animals from one location to another carries diseases, which spread and mutate easily

Wildlife trafficking is one of the world’s biggest international crimes Opinion column from Noga Syon - September 2022 (Part 1)

TiME ∙ Jul 16

3 min read

“If you want the funding you need your followers and fans to vote in your favor”

SAM SHANEE on WHY protect Biodiversity through THIS IS MY EARTH – PART 4/4  What makes This is My Earth so special? This is My Earth’s funding model based on supports through crowdfunding and voting is fairly unique and it helps the people and the organizations like us who are waiting for the funding, to…

TiME ∙ Jul 13

19 min read

“TiME is this little animal running under the nose of more prominent corporations and saving the land before it’s too late”

This is My Earth Interviews artist Tomer Baruch. Hi Tomer! Thanks for your time. Can you please introduce yourself to the This is My Earth community? My name is Tomer, I am a musician, and I’ve created an Instagram account named “Animals and Synthesizers.” In that account, I take animal videos and compose electronic music…

TiME ∙ Jul 11

2 min read

“This is My Earth has been great in securing financing for land purchases”

SAM SHANEE on WHY protect Biodiversity through THIS IS MY EARTH – PART 3/4 How has your experience with This is My Earth been? Over the last few years we’ve worked several times with This is My Earth, they’ve been very great in securing financing for land purchases to extend or to create new land…

TiME ∙ Jul 8

3 min read

“Local communities are, by far, the best allies for nature conservation”

SAM SHANEE on WHY protect Biodiversity through THIS IS MY EARTH – PART 2/4 Neotropical Primate Conservation (NPC) is a registered charity dedicated to the conservation of primates and their habitats in South and Central America. NPC aims to promote conservation and protect biodiversity in the Neotropics by working in several ways. NPC uses monkeys as…

TiME ∙ Jul 8

2 min read

This is My Earth explained in 1 minute

We have created this short video to explained most of the things we do: This is My Earth explained in 1 minute

TiME ∙ Jul 5

3 min read

“Even though there are wild areas with intact forest you can see that some of them don’t have any monkeys left”

SAM SHANEE on WHY protect Biodiversity through THIS IS MY EARTH – PART 1/4 Neotropical Primate Conservation (NPC) is a registered charity dedicated to the conservation of primates and their habitats in South and Central America. NPC aims to promote conservation and protect biodiversity in the Neotropics by working in several ways. NPC uses monkeys…

TiME ∙ Jul 4

6 min read

An electronic music party raises funds for TiME, and ocean animals are the performers

“An organism is an evening dedicated entirely to the seam between the animal and the life. A protected space where algorithms can flourish and animals know how to play.” This is how artist Tomer Baruch introduces the party that will take place on the night of July 4 in Tel Aviv. Co-organized by the good…

TiME ∙ Jun 26

2 min read

Ask This is My Earth for funding: Here is how

This is My Earth is always actively looking for new nature conservation projects that have a key scientific and environmental interest. As you know, ours is a crowdfunding system through which empowered citizens around the world make small (or large) donations, as a gift, individually or in group, and vote on which nature conservation project…

TiME ∙ Jun 22

2 min read

What can YOU do to protect the planet? Join TiME’s team and help us spread the word through a monthly newsletter!

This is My Earth (TiME) is looking for a volunteer to craft their monthly newsletter to members. TiME is a non-profit, international environmental organization that seeks to protect biodiversity by purchasing land for conservation in biodiversity hotspots, in collaboration with local communities and organizations. Join our team and help TiME spread the word about: ·…

TiME ∙ Jun 19

22 min read

“Insects have survived the last five mass extinctions our planet has faced; but this time is different”

Dave Goulson (born 30 July 1965)  is Professor of Biology (Evolution, Behaviour and Environment) at the University of Sussex. Specializing in the ecology and conservation of insects, particularly bumblebees, Goulson is the author of several books, including Bumblebees: Their Behaviour and Ecology (2003), Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypses (2021), and more than 200 academic articles. In 2006 he founded the Bumblebee Conservation Trust,…

TiME ∙ Jun 14

2 min read

The first international meeting of TiME volunteers puts Communication on the agenda

The first international meeting of volunteers of This is My Earth · TiME was held in virtual format on June 13th. People from all over the world, under the coordination of the organization’s Director of Volunteers, Reut Gilad, contributed their ideas and visions on communication, collaboration and how to grow the conservation project for almost…

TiME ∙ Jun 13

3 min read

We have created This is My Earth’s Annual Report for you

This is My Earth 2021 annual report collects the most relevant milestones achieved by the organization in the fields of conservation and biodiversity. It is open access and contains a fully transparent report.

TiME ∙ May 22

7 min read

𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲: This is our TiME List of protected animals

Since This is My Earth started saving lands in danger in 2016, the list of species and animals that have since been protected has not stopped growing. The international motto chosen for Biodiversity Day 2022 is𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲, and its objective is to promote the idea that we are all part of…

TiME ∙ Apr 18

7 min read

Join EARTH DAY global campaign to #InvestInOurPlanet – Download our Action Toolkit!

This is My Earth joins #InvestInOurPlanet campaign on the occasion of the Earth Day 2022 with a video and materials created by our network of volunteers.

TiME ∙ Mar 16

4 min read

Some highlights from the IPCC Climate Report

The Working Group from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) from the United Nations invited TiME · This Is My Earth as a guest organization at the press conference where the 6TH ASSESSMENT REPORT – Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability was presented. On 27 February 2022, this international Working Group from the United Nations finalized…

TiME ∙ Feb 22

7 min read

History of the region’s Cacau-cabruca · Chronicles from Brazil

In 2020, hundreds of volunteers from all over the world helped us save an endangered land in the Sierra Bonita area of ​​Brazil (Google Maps +). Together, through TiME, we raised US$ 148,373 which helped Instituto Uiraçu organization – our partner in the area – to get down to work with the task of preserving…

TiME ∙ Feb 22

9 min read

Biodiversity faces its make-or-break year

The  United Nations decade-old plan to slow down and eventually stop the decline of species and ecosystems by 2020 has failed as most of the plan’s 20 targets have not been met. Among the strategic goals which have not been accomplished, there is the need to address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming biodiversity…

TiME ∙ Feb 20

3 min read

Scientists map 80% of unknown species

New map shows where the 80% of species we don’t know about may be hiding in the very interesting study "Shortfalls and opportunities in terrestrial vertebrate species".

TiME ∙ Dec 30

12 min read

TiME’s Newsletters

Here you will find links to the 50+ newsletters we have published in recent years. Don’t miss the opportunity, if you haven’t already, to register and receive our emails with our latest updates, news and campaigns in our action of nature protection, education and solidarity. 2023 August 2023 – The birding adventure of a lifetime…

TiME ∙ Dec 29

2 min read

The ecological impact of war in Africa

Today’s declining number of large mammals around the world has been explained by many factors, including low reproductive rates, habitat destruction, and overhunting. However, uncertainties about the effects of armed conflict has complicated conservation planning and priority-setting efforts. In the past 70 years, humans have waged war continuously in the world’s most biodiverse regions. Between…

TiME ∙ Nov 30

6 min read

This is My Earth in Kenya with Professor Uri Shanas

The following interview with founder and co-chair Uri Shanas was published in our August 2016 newsletter: Hello, Uri. You’ve recently returned from Kenya. Can you tell us why you went? Kenya is one of the last places on earth where one can experience nature in all its might and beauty, so I was excited to visit TiME’s…

TiME ∙ Nov 29

3 min read

Chatting with Jasmine, a 12-year old TiME supporter

We spoke to Jasmine, daughter of two of TiME’s Board of Directors, Ondine Sherman and Dror Ben-Ami. She recently donated 1800 NIS (about 470 USD) to TiME, nearly a third of the gift money she received for her Bat Mitzvah. First of all, we asked Jasmine to explain a Bat Mitzvah: Jasmine: “In Jewish culture,…

TiME ∙ Nov 28

3 min read

A visit to TiME’s first biodiversity hotspot land purchase

“Please, Nestor, please continue to point out the orchid flowers,” I cried almost breathlessly to the CEO of Neotropical Primate Conservation (NPC) while we climbed up the land TiME had just purchased. “You know we both need these stops so we can catch our breath.” Nestor Allgas and I were trying to keep pace with…

TiME ∙ Nov 25

1 min read

Protecting megafauna and raising money for conservation

This piece was published in our March 2017 newsletter:

TiME ∙ Nov 21

4 min read

Ivory Belongs to Elephants

Since the dawn of humanity, we have been actively fighting nature: drying swamps, cutting down forests, using strong pesticides (such as DDT) and hunting wildlife to extinction (think of the dodo, Tasmanian tiger, passenger pigeon and many, many more). Today, experts believe that we are facing a sixth mass extinction, which is entirely attributable to…

TiME ∙ Nov 20

6 min read

Gold in Africa – an interview with Henry Gold, TiME board member

For TiME’s February 2017 newsletter we interviewed board member Henry Gold, co-founder of Canadian Physician for Aid and Relief (CPAR)and TDA Global Cycling: You worked in Africa for quite a few years. Can you tell us what kind of work you were doing? I’m trained as an engineer, but in 1984 I quit engineering and…

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