Hope and Realism in Conservation Biology

Things that give reason for hope: * human ingenuity * increasing awareness of the human predicament among the world's peoples * increasing awareness of this predicament among national and state governments * many successful achievements by nongovernmental organizations and governments * rapidly accumulating scientific knowledge of how ecological and social systems work * increasing interest in ecologically based economics * technological innovations relevant to conservation * increasing pubic awareness of ecosystem services * energy efficiency improvements * development of sustainable energy sources Things that give reason for despair: * accelerating biodiversity losses * the human ecological footprint now exceeds estimated biocapacity of the planet * continuing human population growth with its inherent inertia * human population growth remains a taboo topic for politicians * increasing per capita food scarcity and declining fresh water supplies * anthropogenic climate change * threats of nuclear warfare * threats of social disintegration * growing demands for energy * economic decline and corporate oligarchy * increasing consumption per capita * political polarization and government paralysis * no politically viable alternative to the universal goal of rapid economic growth * increasing ignorance of science * decreasing support for higher education * rising poverty coupled with increasing inequality of wealth distribution * terrorism * declining marine fisheries * increase in infectious diseases * growing complexity of the human enterprise requiring an increasing percent of resources devoted to maintenance