ScienceTalk

We need to start taking care of the earth

Above: A family looking for a rickshaw amid heavy smog in New Delhi, India's most polluted major city, last November. Right: A woman wearing a protective mask to fight the severe air pollution in Beijing in February. China and India have begun to pay
Above: A family looking for a rickshaw amid heavy smog in New Delhi, India's most polluted major city, last November. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Above: A family looking for a rickshaw amid heavy smog in New Delhi, India's most polluted major city, last November. Right: A woman wearing a protective mask to fight the severe air pollution in Beijing in February. China and India have begun to pay
Above: A woman wearing a protective mask to fight the severe air pollution in Beijing in February. China and India have begun to pay serious attention to renewable energy and to cleaning up pollution. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
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As we have seen in the news last year and now this year, the earth's ecosystems are being subjected to unprecedented levels of global change stemming from human activities, including climate change, land use intensification, atmospheric pollution, and species extinctions and invasions.

Pressure on the environment continues to grow and the consequences of human-induced global change on the earth's ecosystems are intensifying. This has created an urgent need for science to generate the knowledge for understanding the causes and consequences of these changes, and to help build sustainable and realistic solutions.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on March 23, 2019, with the headline We need to start taking care of the earth. Subscribe