Nature Needs Half
Nature Needs Half
Rethinking our relationship with ecology for a resilient future
By: Sabrina Careri
Nature Needs Half
Rethinking our relationship with ecology for a resilient future
While nature deserves more than half, saving half provides a critical foundation for restoration and resilience.
Nature Needs Half is an initiative that calls for the conservation of half the Earth’s land and seas. Also known as “Half Earth” by ecologist E.O. Wilson, this initiative seeks to safeguard 50% of our planet’s natural landscapes and systems from being developed. This vision for the future presents us with an initial framework, but actually achieving it requires thoughtful and innovative strategies that reconnect our ecosystems across our land and waters to create meaningful action towards the future resilient city.
While half of earth might seem inconceivable, it is a global philosophy that can be integrated into our cities locally, bridging our growing communities and the urgency of conservation. More than half the world’s population now lives in urban areas, and the rapid rate of urbanization has exacerbated biodiversity loss, habitat fragmentation and the degradation of ecosystems.
The question is, how much must be loose before we take action? Faced with unprecedented loss of species worldwide, scientists continue to warn us that we are already in the midst of the sixth mass extinction. Enhancing ecological connectivity is critical to the conservation of biodiversity as habitat loss continues to endanger life on Earth. Despite staggering numbers of biodiversity loss, humans continue to encroach into natural wildlife habitats.
Nature Needs Half presents us with a solution to protect crucial ecosystems and the services they provide, and to also rethink the spaces around us too. In urban areas, this could mean advocating for political leaders that prioritize ecological integrity – conserving critical habitats, designing with nature, and supporting the creation of green corridors and networks among other initiatives. Supporting Nature Needs Half means intentionally adopting small but impactful changes in our communities too. From rewilding areas, shopping local and with sustainability in mind, supporting conservation efforts, and advocating for biodiversity-enhancing policies.
Nature Needs Half is about reimagining a balanced, equitable and reciprocal relationship between us as humans and the natural world that sustains us. This represents a goal at a minimum that we must strive for – a starting point to protect biodiversity. While nature deserves more than half, saving half provides a critical foundation for restoration and resilience.
To learn more about conservation activities, priority areas, and the current status of conservation efforts visit the Half-Earth Project Map.
