12 Ways to Prevent Biodiversity Loss

Purchasing sustainable and Fairtrade products is a simple yet impactful change anyone can make. Love your morning coffee? Look for the Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance, or other sustainable certification. This small shift can help coffee farming families earn a decent income while ensuring that your cup of joe is grown with sustainable agroforestry methods.

Over 60 years after Rachel Carson's Silent Spring made Americans aware of the harms of chemical pesticides, many harmful fertilizers, insecticides, pesticides and herbicides continue to be sold. The chemicals in these products contaminate soil and water — and can poison insects, birds, fish, pets and even children. Instead of using chemical-based products, opt for natural formulas and deterrents that won’t contribute to local biodiversity loss.  

Donating to our biodiversity projects helps protect endangered species by restoring holistic ecosystems, increasing soil stability, improving water quality, and more. Your donation will help restore forest cover in Uganda, Australia and the Pacific Northwest. 

Trash can be detrimental to ecosystems and the wildlife that depend on them. Whether you participate in a beach clean up or simply are committed to removing trash around your neighborhood each day, keeping the planet clean is a simple way to support local biodiversity. 

Make an effort to visit a farmer’s market and purchase seasonal and organic produce. This saves on the emissions used to ship produce to a grocery store while also reducing pesticide usage. Adopt a more sustainable diet: swapping some meat and dairy products for plant-based protein and fats is a great way reduce your environmental impact. 

While well-kept yards may look nice, they're unnatural habitats for the critters in your neighborhood. Section off a portion of your yard and plant native shrubs, flowers or trees to help meet the food, clean water and shelter needs of local wildlife. Butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds are among the charismatic new guests you might attract! And with monarch butterflies recently being designated as endangered, this is more important than ever. 

It’s important to educate youth on the importance of the world's rich biodiversity and why we need to protect it for many generations to come. Next time you have an opportunity to teach your kids, nieces, nephews or neighbors about biodiversity, be sure to watch this video together! And if you're a teacher or homeschooler, be sure to check out our free environmental education curriculum!

Reduce your waste and swap chemical fertilizer out for a natural fertilizer by using compost instead! Everything from fruit and vegetable scraps to egg shells, tea bags and coffee grounds can be broken down into organic matter. Adding compost to your garden will help improve soil stability and increase nutrients while helping important microorganisms and worms thrive.

Keep local wildlife safe by monitoring your dog or cat when they're outdoors, and consider attaching a bell to their collar. Cats and many breeds of dogs will hunt birds, frogs, squirrels and other wildlife. In fact, when researchers from the Smithsonian institute and the USFWS combined data, they found that in the US, domestic cats attack 1-4 billion birds every year, as well as 6.3-22.3 billion small mammals, birds and hundreds of millions of reptiles, vertebrate species and amphibians.

Whether you’re getting your hands dirty and planting trees or giving baby squirrels some much needed TLC, volunteering for an environmental organization or wildlife rescue is a great way to support biodiversity in your area. Bonus: giving back is also a guaranteed mood-booster! Contact your local environmental organization for opportunities to get involved.

If you tend to hop in a cab or drive your car down the street, try challenging yourself to cut down those emissions!

Walking, biking or rollerblading are fantastic ways to reduce your carbon footprint, improve your personal health and save on gas money. 

Support local initiatives that work to protect threatened habitats and improve species richness. This can mean emailing your local political representatives, attending peaceful protests, purchasing wildlife-friendly products, or advocating for the protection of endangered plants and animals.