The Biodiversity Foundation will participate tomorrow in the opening ceremony of the Seminar “Why do we lose biodiversity?”, organized by Ecologistas en Acción, with the collaboration of the Biodiversity Foundation and the Complutense Center for Environmental Studies and Information.

“Why are we losing biodiversity? Cultural and Economic Roots of Biodiversity Loss”, which is part of the celebration of the International Year of Biological Diversity, will be held over the weekend at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid and will feature the participation of representatives of the scientific world – biologists, ecologists, anthropologists, theologians, economists – and social movements.

In this seminar, experts and social actors will try to identify the underlying causes of the destruction of biodiversity and will discuss the values and elements that could favour a greater approach of Spanish society to nature conservation, proposing actions to be developed to act on them. In fact, some of the measures taken during these years have focused on responding to changes in the state of biological diversity, such as the declaration of protected areas, plans for endangered species or the fight against pollution, although there is still a long way to go to reverse some of the causes of the deterioration of biological diversity.

The seminar is divided into three sessions. The first will analyse the situation and importance of terrestrial and marine biodiversity. The second session will focus on the cultural roots of biodiversity loss, analysing biocentric cultures, cultural anthropology, the impact of religion on our relationship with nature, and the contribution of women to the conservation of life. And the third session will focus on the economic roots of biodiversity loss, addressing the changes made in production systems in recent centuries and in the rural world, the effects of the current economic model and market globalisation.