Category: Conservation of Forest

Within the last 30 years, the state of the world’s climate has been a growing topic of discussion. Climate change can and will have drastic effects on the planet and will become the greatest threat to humans. One of these effects is desertification. Desertification is the transition of an area into a drier climate, typically associated with deforestation and droughts. Perhaps the largest and most profound case of this effect is found in Africa, on the northern border of Sub-Saharan Africa and the Sahara Desert. The expansion of this desert to the south is becoming a major problem in areas affected due to the effect it has on farmland, ecosystems, deforestation, and water sources.

A solution to this threat is a project called The Great Green Wall. This is a project that involves more than 20 African nations and other groups determined to build a barrier of trees and vegetation to help fight this expansion. One of these nations is the country of Libya, Libya is in Northern Africa, and is consumed by the Sahara Desert entirely, but this does not mean their involvement in this project is minor. The analysis of the costs and benefits of investing in natural resource management, the implementation of this initiative, and the long-term positive effects this barrier will have will prove this project as a viable solution to this problem as well as highlight Libya’s and other African nations’ involvement.

Massive environmental projects like the Great Green Wall will carry immense costs through the planting of the vegetation, the labor associated with the work required, and the maintenance of these new systems of life. These costs make it hard for people to see what the benefits of these projects are. An article published by Agropolis International, a French research foundation, discusses some of these costs and benefits of fighting the increased desertification in Africa. The article written with input from more than a dozen authors discusses the relationship between the benefits and costs of investing in resource management. The authors state that “the benefits of implemented forestry investments (wood production, fodder, enhanced crop yield) are correlated with the forest implementation and maintenance costs (plants, watering, monitoring, land costs, etc.)” (Bellefontaine et. al. 26). From this, the argument of whether or not it is beneficial to invest in resource management can be answered with the support that it is in many ways. Now, with Libya’s geographic location and climate, this vegetative wall cannot form within the bounds of the nation. However, Libya’s contribution to this project is in the form of funding. An article published in Landscape News, an online science journal that features the latest science-driven news, details how “today, the Initiative has 21 African countries participating, some $8 billion of pledged funding, and such weighty partners as the World Bank and the French government” (Bilski). One of these nations is Libya. The fact that Libya will not be directly affected by this project, and is surrounded by desert is very important. It shows that there are groups that will take on the costs associated with this project without seeing the direct benefits. This notion provides support that this initiative can be a viable solution to the desertification and climate problems that face Africa today.

The planned-out and intensive implementation of The Great Green Wall also provides support that this project is a viable solution to desertification. According to an article published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and Bioversity International, this project will involve a tree belt that is 15 kilometers wide, and 7775 kilometers long (Berrahmouni et. al 4). At the conclusion of this article, the writers of this article describe how “A number of successful forestation and forest restoration projects exist in the GGWSSI countries and these can be quickly upscaled to support the effective implementation of the initiative” (Berrahmouni et. al 18). GGWSSI represents the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative. This way of thinking about implementing a project of this size is key to its success of it. The concept of people or groups summing their smaller parts together to form a larger whole is one that simplifies the initiative into something that is manageable compared to the first sight of it. Libya in fact is one of these “smaller parts” that can have a large impact on the success of fighting desertification. Now as mentioned before, given that Libya is almost entirely covered by the Sahara Desert and their contributions to The Great Green Wall are primarily financial. However, in a section of the book titled Combating Desertification in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, Ali Mansour Saad, Noresah Mohd Shariff, and Sanjay Gariola describe some of Libya’s efforts that could be upscaled by saying “major desertification controlling strategies can be summarized in the implementation of a range of diverse projects by government in many areas (i.e. forest, pastures, sand dune fixation, soil and water conservation, resistance to erosion and integrated agricultural development)” (Saad et. al via Heshmati and Squires 82). With many other countries’ plans to fight desertification in place, the collective effort of organizing these programs can be used to form this Great Green Wall. Lastly, the time to create this wall is very important to its success of it. According to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, this initiative was started in 2007 with estimated completion by 2030, with major progress in spaces including Ethiopia, Senegal, and Nigeria (UNCCD). Yes, at first this can seem like a long period of time for the estimated completion of a project. However, the question can be asked, how long until the problem of desertification becomes insurmountable and what effect will the drastic consequences of the continuing southward expansion of the Sahara Desert have on those in Africa, but also on those throughout the world? Doubters of this project may want to take a harder look at the concrete facts and realize that it is better to act sooner rather than later.

Lastly, the analysis of the long-term benefits of reforestation and fighting desertification will provide further support that The Great Green Wall is a sustainable and effective solution to the crisis at hand. The most obvious of these benefits is the positive environmental impact the wall will have. However, there is a wide range of positive economic and social impacts this project will have. An article by professor Njidda Mamadu Gadzama, a Nigerian zoologist and environmental scientist offers a critical review of this initiative while discussing some of the benefits associated with it. He focuses strongly on the project’s involvement in Nigeria and discusses the high poverty rate in the northern part of the country and says that “the GGW project which is succeeding, represents a special venture for stabilizing the environment and offers an opportunity for improved livelihoods for inhabitants of the two zones” (Gadzama 286). The two zones represent the Northeast and Northwest areas of Nigeria which are directly affected by the spread of the Sahara. He provides the input of stakeholders in the project who highlight these improvements for the area such as increased food supply, job creation, and sustainable farming (Gadzama 286). Nigeria is just one of the twenty-plus nations involved in the project. With attainable results from the intensive planning and coordination of the Great Green Wall, there is a motive and support created from those who desertification threatens immediately. Now, hopes and wishes for positive outcomes are great, but there are those that rely on hard evidence or the data of something for it to be evaluated. While the project is still taking shape, there have been positive results from previous reforestation projects that The Great Green Wall can be monitored. The article published by Agropolis International that analyzed the costs associated with the benefits of this initiative also references a study over a 20-year period in Niger and Burkina Faso in which inhabitants of these regions actively protected trees and vegetation during the time span of the study. The authors of the article state that ‘these trees produced wood (as of the 6th year), fodder, and enabled an increase in crop yields (5% harvest increase). These field survey-based assessments revealed rates of return of 31% in Niger and 24%in Burkina Faso (Bellefontaine et. al. 26).

Abstract

Red panda, Ailurus fulgens is unique animal of carnivora family that just has a single species and probably falls under monotypic family. Although they are found from Mugu to Ilam district inside eight different protected areas and one community forest of Nepal, the total population is not known. Their preferred habitat is the bamboo-dominated vegetation of evergreen deciduous forest within an average altitudinal range of 2,400m to 3,600m with abundant fallen logs and tree stumps. The red panda diet comprises 54-100% of bamboo leaves with others like bamboos shoots, Sorbus fruits and mushroom depending upon the seasons. This low quality diet makes them active day and night making vulnerable to different anthropogenic factors and even predation by leopards. Habitat fragmentation, deforestation and degradation, poaching, over grazing, over exploitation of forest resources, developmental activities, other human disturbances and feral dogs are the major threats for red panda. National Park and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1973 tries to protect red panda along with its habitat. A community based conservation approach is also being practiced in Choyatar Community Forest, Ilam. Beside this only Langtang National Park has a specific conservation plan for red panda. As the species is vulnerable to extinction with the low population density a focused conservation and management plan should be formulated and implemented with the active participation of local people.

Introduction

The Red Panda Ailurus fulgens is a small arboreal mammal and the only species of genus Ailurus and family Ailuridae. It is a threatened mammal listed as vulnerable by the IUCN and is found in the bamboo dominated temperate forest of eastern Himalaya (Sharma and Belant, 2009). Although it has interested many researchers and scientists only little knowledge and research has been done so far. It is one of the favorite animals for the zoo visitor with its unique taxonomic features. It is still ambiguous whether it belongs to bears, procyonids or the giant panda Ailuropoda melanoleuca and may thus have obtained the status of monotypic subfamily (Yonzon and Hunter Jr, 1991).

Apart from the world´s zoo the status of red panda in the wild is poorly known. There were about 157 red pandas in 43 zoos in 1988 around the world. The exact population of world´s wild red panda is unknown because of the difficulty of it´s study as it occupies the difficult rough remote terrains and has simply been estimated to be 13,000 to 16,000 individuals among which 3,800 to 5,000 are Ailurus fulgens styani and 9,200 to 11,000 Ailurus fulgens fulgens. Red pandas are the silent creatures, which are both diurnal and nocturnal. They are basically a bamboo eater with strong, curved and sharp semi-retractile claws. The home range or the crude density of red panda may depend upon the age of an animal. The sub-adult female of 8 months old occupies 3.4km2 whereas the adult female occupies 0.91km2 and male 1.11km2 in Wolong Reserve, China. Habitat condition plays an important role in occurrence of red panda. Besides the dense bamboo forest, closeness to water may be the basic requirements for their habitat. The presence of pellet groups at 0 to 100m range of water body or in different substrates like fallen logs, tree stumps, rocks, tree holes shows the habitat requisite of red pandas

Red pandas are the flagships for numerous species and even for the people sharing the mountain forests.

The availability of red panda extends within a narrow band of Himalaya range, starting from Mugu district of western Nepal along with Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh of India, Bhutan, northern Burma, southeastern Tibet, to west Yunan, Sichuan and Shaanxi provision of China. This shows that the distribution limits between the Annapurna regions of Nepal in west to the Qingling mountains of china in east. Few of the studies have been conducted in Nepal; it is thus difficult to assess the status of pandas from the available literatures. The late Pralad Yonzon was the first conservation biologist to study red panda in the mid hills of Nepal. He has studied about the conservation of red pandas in Lantang National Park. Also, the study about the summer diet of red panda, habitat distribution and abundance of red panda has been conducted in Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve and even the status of red panda outside the protected area in eastern Nepal has been studied. Recently there are few organizations like RPN, NCDC, ICIMOD working along with the local participation for the conservation and protection of red panda and it´s habitat.

Population Distribution and Habitats

Red panda can be found in different habitats from evergreen forest to deciduous forest or coniferous forest that have the dominancy of bamboo species but they have the distinct preference of habitat that comprise of abundant fallen logs and tree stumps. Red panda are found in eight different protected areas of Nepal viz: Annapurna Conservation Area, Kangchenjunga Conservation Area, Manaslu Conservation Area, Langtang National Park, Makalu-Barun National Park, Rara National Park, Sagarmatha National Park and Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve. Apart from these protected area it is also found in community managed government forest of eastern Nepal, in the Jamuna and Mabhu VDC of Ilam.

It is extremely infrequent to encounter or have a proper sighting of red panda in the wild, so must of the studies are done based on the availability of the pellets and walking along the trails. According to Yonzon and Hunter Jr, 1991 among the habitats of red pandas with different vegetation types – fir-jhapra, rhododendron, broadleaved forests-raate, birch and alpine scrub; fir-jhapra with the narrow altitudinal range of 2,800m to 3,900m was the most preferred in Langtang National Park, Nepal. Even the study conducted in Sikkim, India shows that the red panda were found within the short altitudinal range of 2,210m to 3,570m. Though the population of red panda was distributed along the entire Singhalila National Park of India, the availability and density of pellet groups, red panda encounter rates showed that they were abundant in broad-leaf deciduous and sub-alpine forest within the altitudinal range of 2,800-3,600m.

The study of Yonzon and Hunter Jr, 1991 in Langtang National Park shows the population status of red panda accordingly. The total adult population was 8 in October 1986 and 5 in October 1987. During the study, among five observed small litters one set of twins and four single births was found. The proportion of fecund female was high but the cub mortality was also high. In between September 1986 to December 1986 only one cub survives whereas 86% of cohort i.e. 5 or 6 cubs died. Similarly, in 1987 67% of cohort i.e. 4 cubs died and only two survived by October. Also the adult mortality was high, 4 out of 9 adults died only in year 1987. Leopard predated the 2 adults and one cub, while humans killed one adult and then a cub died due starvation and two other cubs were also killed due human disturbances. Finally based on ecological density of one adult panda/2.9km2 the total estimated population would be 37 adults. Similarly, the crude density of red panda estimated in Singhalila National Park was 1adult/1.67km2, which was comparatively higher than that of Langtang National Park 1adult/2.9km2.

The pellet groups were observed within the site with abundance of bamboos and available water resources from 3,000m to 3,600m with higher frequency of occurrence from 3,000m to 3,500m in Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve. Similarly red panda pellet groups were observed from 3,117m to 3,591m with higher frequency of occurrence from 3,200m to 3,350m and then constant up to 3,400m while there were no any pellets found above 3,591m and below 3,100m in Rara National Park. In Jamuna and Mabhu community forest red panda signs were recorded from 2,500m to 3,000m with the rate of 0.56/km from 2,400-2,600m, 2.44/km from 2,600-2,800m and 5.1/km from 2,800-3,000m.

Apart from the ground the encounter of pellets or red panda was mostly seen on different tree species found on different physiographical or geographical regions. Some of those tree species are Pinus wallichina, Quercus semicarpefolia, Betula utilis, Juniperus indica, Sorbus cuspidate, Rhododendron sps, Sorbus microphylla, Schefflera impressa, Himalayacalamus falconeri, Thamnocalamus aristatus, Lindera pulcherrima, Arundinaria maling, Tsuga dumosa, with the higher frequency in Abies spectabilis

Diet and Feeding habit

Red panda is difficult to track in the wild so its food and feeding habits are analysed from their fresh droppings as these are roughly digested and can be easily separated. Being the member of carnivora they have an unusual diet that primarily comprise of bamboo shoots, Sorbus fruits and mushrooms and sometimes the eggs of birds

The diet of red panda´s found in Langtang National Park includes mostly the leaves of single bamboo species jhapra almost about 54-100% around the year and even few other items depending upon the seasons like jhapra and raate shoots in spring and summer and Sorbus fruits and mushrooms in late summer and autumn and may be because of this low quality diet they are active 56% of total time throughout day and night. Similarly, it has been found that the red panda in Singhalila National Park consumed the leaves of Arundinaria maling, Arundinaria aristata, fruits of Arundinaria strigosa and bamboo shoots in temperate region while Arundinaria aristata, bamboo shoots and berries of Sorbus microphylla. There were six different plant species identified and 2.5% of the diet was unidentifiable in the pellets of red panda in Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve. The identified species were Arundinaria sps (81.7%), Acer sps (4.5%), Quercus semicarpifolia (3.3%), Berberis sps (2.1%) and lichens (2%) and among the consumption of Arundinaria sps 58% was the stem portion whereas 23.75% the leaf.

Red Panda have the short alimentary canal so defecate immediately after feeding. Since they feed on low calorie diet they usually spent most of their time feeding and feed a large amount of food. They usually use elevated objects like fallen logs, branches, small shrubs, tree stumps to get the bamboo leaves easily. They run in the ground or in the trees searching for food and place foods in the mouth directly by mouth or with the help of forepaws.

Threats

The population of red panda does not have any reliable number (Ziegler et al., 2010); they are threatened and vulnerable to extinction because of habitat fragmentation, deforestation and it´s natural habitat degradation and destruction, poaching for hats, fur or even for “good luck charm” and an illegal trading as pet or zoo animal, tourism and domestic dogs

. The threat arise due habitat fragmentation is also that it may lead the species towards inbreeding and finally the loss of genetic variation (Mahato, 2012). Similar threats due grazing, establishment of Goths and poaching were also seen in Sighalila National Park in the past but after 1993 the area was declared as national park and thus the exploitation is controlled now.

The study of Yonzon and Hunter Jr, 1991 in Langtang National Park shows that the red panda has low fecundity but high mortality. They reported that 57% of the deaths is due humans either related with cattle herders, overgrazing or may be with their dogs. Though the competition of food may not be important as chauri feeds on bamboo leaves at the lower heights than that of red pandas but they disturbed the abundance of bamboos by trampling and consuming the leaves at shorter stalk reducing its growth, which ultimately threats an existence to them with the scarcity of food. Also as they depend on jhapra shoots, the low quality diets they remain active most of the time either day or night so are more vulnerable to predation by leopards.

According to the study of Subedi and Thapa, 2011, one of the major threats in Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve is the seasonal overgrazing of large numbers of livestock in the forested land that creates a disturbance and destruction of red panda habitat. Besides this illegal trapping of the animal, illegal logging of trees for firewood and timber are other problems associated with the threats of red panda. Even the collection of bamboo shoots for livestock´s calves creates a food competition between red panda and the domesticated animals. As per the study a total of 3,500 buffaloes, 25,000 cows, 3,500 horses and 70,000 goats and sheep graze inside the reserve area that has the direct impact on the habitat of red panda.

Similar results were shown from the study in Rara National Park. People were directly involved for the collection of tree twigs, illegal grazing inside park area, harvesting of nigalo as fodder or raw materials for the preparation of hat, tube of hukka, basket, etc that creates a threat for red panda. Not only in Rara National Park the killing of red panda by the dog is also problem in Jamuna and Mabhu VDCs, Ilam.

The workshop conducted by NTNC from 2 to 6 September 2010 on “Red Panda in Nepal – A Population and Habitat Viability Assessment and Species Conservation Strategy” has finally grouped the threats on seven major categories. They were:

· Loss and degradation of habitat due different human induced causes like forest fire, overgrazing, collection of firewoods, fodder, NTFPs, ineffective pastureland management system and the conflict between the species and transhuman pastoralists.

· Trapping and poaching for fur, skin, meat and for adopting as zoo animals or pets.

· Effect of infrastructural developmental activities like road, hydropower construction, encroachment for agriculture, different alien species, excess use of pesticides and even the eco-tourist or pilgrim visitors.

· Weak governance, inadequate implementation and enforcement of rules and regulations, political instability.

· Lack of awareness, education, funds and expertise.

· Effect of climate change, landslides, floods, sudden outburst, irregular precipitation and snowfall with high intensity and diseases.

· Other transboundary conflicts related to illegal harvesting of forest products, illegal trade and poaching.

Conclusion

Red panda is hard to be observed and found in the wild, so the study is based on surveys, interviews and collecting, observing & analyzing the pellets

Red panda is one of the keystone species with the narrow range of habitat prerequisite that occurs in the eastern Himalayan range. Therefore the proper management and conservation of this species is necessary not only for it´s own conservation but also for the conservation and protection of the entire biodiversity and wildlife species and even the local communities sharing the same habitat range. Still, red panda is poorly known because of it´s low population size and habitat distribution in remote and rough terrain. The studies done so far shows the major threats as human encroachment, illegal hunting, overgrazing, over exploitation of forest products and thus red panda conservation and management plan should be formulated that will address current policies, habitat improvement strategies, alternative livelihood strategies, reintroduction of species and also abide people with strict rules and regulations in utilization of forest resources, control over livestock grazing and feral dogs. Although Nepal has initiated in preparing long-term Species Conservation Action Plan, only Red Panda Action Plan for Langtang National Park has been formulated and there is no any conservation plan in Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve, or in Rara National Park. Thus, an intensive study about it´s habitat selection, behavior, population size and distribution, threats and conservation status is necessary and the conservation and management plan should be prepared along with the focused action plan.

Identification of Dilemma

According to Meijaard & Sheil (2012), any business person finds himself or herself in routine arguments. The argument calls for thought decision on the ways to hand the situation. The overall ethical dilemma has confronted George, the manager of the Beech-Nut company, who is in a situation of making a difficult choice for the sake of the company’s operations. The passion that George has developed towards the organization is too big to be under-rate by anyone. George is in a dilemma whether to agree with his boss’s new agreements on whether to continue producing the products with the bogus apple juice concentrate or not and make a risk of closing the plant. George does not want to transgress his moral principle by accepting Bill’s decisions on purchasing lower-cost apple juice concentrates, which is bogus, but the fear of losing his job pressures him to accept.

The dilemma calls for the management to decide on the structure, strategy, action plans, and budgets to incurred to ensure the stability of Beech Nut. A study by Panța (2017) established that debates and arguments are inevitable. Therefore the organization must come up with the best policies to overcome the menace. Beech Nut must make a hard choice considering the dilemma on their hands. Bring the organization back from grave financial trouble will involve the selection of the best policies. The financial dilemma in the hand of the organization reduces the ability of the organization to penetrate other markets. Right, collide, which happens as an argument between individuals in the organization, creates an ethical dilemma.

Beech Nut is also experiencing ‘good for the unit versus good for the whole’ dilemma. The dilemma is evident when George and Bill are arguing on whether to adopt a new low-cost supplier or to work with the old suppliers. The move to have a new cheap supplier would mean a reduced cost of production for the firm. On the other hand, the move to have a new supplier would mean an end to the old contract with the previous suppliers.

The contextual forces from Bill Bailiff are influencing George to breach the business ethics to save the company from shutting down because of the high operation costs. George is in a difficult situation about the ramifications of his looming decision. Bill seems to know about the bogus apple juice concentrate, which for many years was used in the production of beech-nut, which confuses George further. Use of bogus apple juice concentrate made of cane sugar syrup, beet sugar, corn syrup, and other ingredients, as discovered by one of George’s plant scientists, is a breach of the company’s ethics. George has the power to order the workers to stop the production using the bogus apple concentrates, but the pressure to turn the ailing company forces him to compromise.

The stakeholders to be impacted by the ethical dilemma include the manager, shareholders, suppliers, the workers and the consumers. The consumers of Beech-Nut products are mainly children who will be highly affected by the consumption of low-quality products. In case the FDA investigation finds out that the Beech-Nut company is selling adulterated and misbranded products, the company will be closed, sending many to jail and high penalties. The other stakeholders who are to be impacted by the movement made by Beech Nut are the suppliers. The suppliers who had a contract with the organization are likely to terminate. The termination process will affect both the organization and its suppliers. The suppliers will lose income through reduced sales, while the organization is likely to lack future supplies for apple juice.

Ethical Frameworks

The Utilitarian Approach

The utilitarian is also known as the Benefit approach, is a form of consequentialist managerial ethic that promotes doing what gives many benefits to a large number of business stakeholders. The principle of benefits approach in managerial ethics considers the actions with many benefits to the company and the target market as the most appropriate. The Utilitarian approach requires that an individual in a company need to sacrifice the most basic thing for the sake of the majority group.

The utilitarian approach of managerial ethics stresses the need to make decisions that are solely based on the outcomes or consequences of a taken action in a business operation. Similarly, the utilitarian perspective on managerial ethics hinges on facts that a decision or any form of action undertaken in the business environment should provide great benefits to many people either directly or indirectly. The managerial ethics taking the perspective of utilitarianism encourages the efficiency in business operations that translates to productivity because every individual is benefitting from the decision.

Deontological Approach

The deontological approach is a managerial ethic perspective that requires ethical decisions in an organization to take into consideration the universal rules and principles of business. The deontological approach calls for the set ethics are verifiable to ensure equitable treatment of all people unless there are moral differences between them. The deontology type of ethic is usually high standard actions that emphasis that an ethical manager to make the right decisions that promote good actions in a business environment.

According to Brücker (2018).the deontological approach requires the ethical managers to act accordingly in a manner that respects the autonomy of the working community and the product’s consumers. Based on deontological based criteria for ethical managers, all the stakeholders are required to make ethical actions that are highly guided by the moral principles about the business operations.

Importance of Deontological Approach

The approach ensures that organizations operate within the right path. According to Brücker (2018), the approach to ethics determines what wrong or right action to be taken by a firm is. Notably, Beech Nut company can decide on whether to work with the new suppliers offering them cheap input or continue with the old trusted suppliers. The approach ensures that all the factors that an organization used to get to a certain outcome are justified. Panța (2017), stated that the deontological approach is concerned with the means as opposed to utilitarian, which is concentrates on the end results.

Ethical Frameworks

The Utilitarian Approach

The utilitarian is also known as the Benefit approach, is a form of consequentialist managerial ethic that promotes doing what gives many benefits to a large number of business stakeholders. The principle of benefits approach in managerial ethics considers the actions with many benefits to the company and the target market as the most appropriate. The Utilitarian approach requires that an individual in a company need to sacrifice the essential thing for the sake of the majority group.

The utilitarian approach of managerial ethics stresses the need to make decisions that are solely based on the outcomes — also, the consequences of a taken action in a business operation. Similarly, the utilitarian perspective on managerial ethics hinges on facts that a decision or any form of action undertaken in the business environment should provide great benefits to many people either directly or indirectly. The managerial ethics taking the perspective of utilitarianism encourages the efficiency in business operations that translates to productivity because every individual is benefitting from the decision.

Deontological Approach

The deontological approach is a managerial ethic perspective that requires ethical decisions in an organization to take into consideration the universal rules and principles of business. The deontological approach calls for inclusivity and that the set ethics are verifiable to ensure equitable treatment of all people. The deontology type of ethic is usually high standard actions that emphasis that an ethical manager to make the right decisions that promote good actions in a business environment.

According to Loewy & Loewy (2007), the deontological approach requires ethical managers to act accordingly in a manner that respects the autonomy of the working community and the product’s consumers. Based on deontological based criteria for ethical managers, all the stakeholders are required to make ethical actions that are highly guided by the moral principles about the business operations.

Evaluation of Ethical Dilemma

George’s situation is quite difficult, and making any decision regarding the Bill proposal on continuing the production of Beech-Nut products with bogus con concentrates is unethical. George is likely to take a deontological managerial approach. George, being an experienced manager, will require making a decision based on the deontological approach. George will consider doing what is right based on his moral principles without breaching business ethics. What will compel George to do what is right is the family he has, which he may not want to lose in case the company is identified by the investigators to have been producing ‘fake’ products. Secondly, the company’s scientist is already aware of the bogus concentrate, and he may disclose to the employees who, when spread to the public, will expose George to a risk of imprisonment.

Rejecting Bill’s proposal on continuing with production operations that are adulterated and misbranded production of the Beech-nut products will be the best choice that George can make. Disagreeing with the boss decided to produce low qualities Beech Nut products for the sake of saving the company from closing will not mean that George is not a good leader. George will be correcting a mistake that can have far much effect to the management as well as the employees. George will be responsible for saving the stakeholders and company based on the decision he makes. The employees do not have the power to decline the management decisions on producing unstandardized products despite them knowing that they are breaching the organization’s ethics.

The deontological managerial approach will require George to reject Bill’s proposal on getting new supplies of low cost that are bogus. George destroying the bogus inventory and ordering withdraw of the juices from the grocer’s shops will be considered wrong even if the consequences will be for the good of all. The action of declining Bill’s new agreement will be right because George will be doing his ethical duties of a manager, which is independent of the consequences. Despite risking plant closure, George should uphold the managerial ethics that are unconditional and applicable to all people in the business.

Continuing producing low-quality products for the sake of profit maximization will expose the company to more severe issues closure of the plant indefinitely. Any suspicion or disclosure of this secret by the employees or any other person to the Federal Government Agency (FDA) investigators will render the management into severe troubles and also risk imprisonment of the company’s stakeholders. Instead, look into other factors that may help the company reduce the operation costs.

Implications of the Decision

George’s decision to destroy the bogus inventory will much beneficial to Beech-Nut consumers. The consumers will pay for real products that meet their expectations, and that suits them. A change in production ingredients will also help increase the sales of the product because the original customers of the products will likely send referrals and friends for purchase. Also, the employees will feel secure and will not in a state of fear that they may lose a job in case the investigators storm in their company and find their fake ingredients. The company’s management will be more conscious in analyzing the factors that may be cumulatively resulting in increased cost of operations and make the right decisions.

Positive Implications

The positive implications that Georges’s decision will make on producing products with the right ingredients is that the company will maximize its efforts in value-adding and brand developments. The efforts will result in the company being cautious of any resource wastage. The company’s need to get back from its financial breakdown to stable operations will force the company to adopt new technology that will enable their products to be more competitive to win a large customer base. The company will also be open to new opportunities that will enable it to maximize profits by doing activities such as value addition and developing other new products. Lastly, the company will also portray a new positive image to the target customers as well as to the employees, which will result to the company winning more consumers resulting in an increase in sales.

Negative Implications

Negative implication is inescapable in the adoption of the deontological approach for managerial ethics in any business operation. Gorge’s decision will result in conflicts between certain duties and rights. Bill and other shareholders will not agree with George’s decision as they will be in favor of rescuing the plant from closure by demanding production with low-cost bogus products. The shareholders will be looking at short-term goals by encouraging higher production with low-cost juice concentrates on maximizing the profits without minding the customer’s needs. Similarly, George may face opposing opinions from the workers with fear of plant closure, which will lead to their job loss. George is likely to be fired if Bill will not find a sense of the matter that the manager will be addressing and preventing for the security of the company’s operations.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Utilitarian Approach

The utilitarian approach is essential in the history of man for planning. The process begins with the identification of a dilemma that is facing an organization. After the identification of a dilemma, the arguing parties begin to negotiate about what should be done. The utilitarian approach provides the negotiating parties a way to solve the menace. Furthermore, utilitarian analyzes any action in terms of its outcomes and consequences of the dilemma in an organization (Panța, 2017). The result and consequences of a dilemma can include the best cost and benefits to the stakeholders. The last importance of the approach is that the utilitarian approach holds every party view’s thus, the end outcome considers all equal decisions of all stakeholders. The disadvantage of the utilitarian is that it is only concerned with the ends and not the means (Brücker, 2018). The concentration of ends may result in the application of crooked means to achieve good results.

References

1. Meijaard, E., & Sheil, D. (2012). The dilemma of green business in tropical forests: how to protect what it cannot identify. Conservation Letters, 5(5), 342-348. doi: 10.1111/j.1755-263x.2012.00252.x
2. Panța, N. (2017). Arguments in Favor of Moving to a Sustainable Business Model in the Apiary Industry. Studies In Business And Economics, 12(3), 159-170. doi: 10.1515/sbe-2017-0043
3. Brücker, H. (2018). A Utilitarian Approach for the Governance of Humanitarian Migration. Analyse & Kritik, 40(2), 293-320. doi: 10.1515/auk-2018-0016
4. Loewy, E., & Loewy, R. (2007). Framing Issues in Health Care: Do American Ideals Demand Basic Health Care and Other Social Necessities for All?. Health Care Analysis, 15(4), 261-271. doi: 10.1007/s10728-007-0063-7.

The cause: Deforestation. What is Deforestation?

Deforestation is basically the process of permanently removing trees to make room for creating land for agriculture, construction, logging, or cattle ranching. Unfortunately, the amazon suffers from deforestation the most. According to WWF, 20% of the Amazon biome has already been lost due to deforestation and is predicted to get worse if deforestation continues at an alarming rate. It is also estimated that Amazon will lose about 27% of its trees by the year 2030. More than half of the Deforestation is done in Brazil. Cattle ranching is responsible for nearly 80% of deforestation causation in the Amazon forest.

Negative impacts of Deforestation in the amazon

As mentioned before, many of Earth’s plants and animals live in the Amazon forest. But due to deforestation, there has been a significantly lost in plant and animal species because their habitats have been destroyed. The trees that are being cut down for deforestation purposes were not only primary shelters for species, but the leaves of the trees served as a shading mechanism that helped regulate temperature. Deforestation also allows for the temperature to change drastically which had a negative effect on inhabitants. Also, trap greenhouse gases mainly caused by human activity. Another capability that the Amazon forest can is to produce 75% of its own rainfall, feeding off surrounding water streams such as rivers. The water in the rivers then flows directly into the ocean which contributes to the circulation of ocean currents. As a result, the evapotranspiration of the Amazon rivers ultimately takes part in controlling the regional climate.

Similarly, to wildlife, the amazon also provides critical services that local residents and indigenous tribes depend on. The resources that Amazon provides support approximately 34 million people who depend on these resources for their survival. They depend on the forest for food, water supply, and shelter. Although remote from the rest of the world, the human inhabitants of the Amazon forest were able to successfully create their own society, culture, and community. Many of the indigenous population who reside in these remote areas in the Amazon have never seen outsiders nor have they ever left the amazon premises. To them, the Amazon jungle is their home, and rightfully so. The inhabitants managed to make amazon jungle adaptable to them and have been doing so since the beginning of time.

The amazon forest as we know it serves as a vital crutch to sustain equilibrium on earth as well as being a major provider to virtually all living things. So why would the amazon jungle be on the verge of slowly depleting?

The Amazon rainforest is credited with the largest and most diverse ecosystems on the planet. This vast fascinating region stretches across the countries of Brazil, Columbia, Peru, Venezuela, French Guiana, Bolivia, and Ecuador. Beyond the surface of lush greens and exotic scenery, Amazon contributes significantly to Earth in several ways. Amazon plays an important role in making the planet function harmoniously.

Amazon is known to be the most biodiverse place on the planet. It is home to thousands of different species of plants and animals. It is unbelievable to note that they are Scientists who claim that they are many species of plants and animals to be discovered in the Amazon. The Rain forest is also estimated to have 390 billion individual trees divided into 16,000 species which highlights the fact that the Amazon is undoubtedly diverse in various ecosystems With so much biodiversity, it is also important to mention that the Amazon is also home to hundreds of endangered species

One valuable benefit to humans that the Amazon forest could potentially offer would be finding natural cures that could lead to advancement in medicine. Considering the abundance of biodiversity in the Amazon, there are thousands of plants and animals that we can conduct scientific research on. This could ultimately lead to scientific breakthroughs that could save millions of lives.

With billions of trees surrounding the Amazon’s radius, it is also important to mention how these magnificent trees are responsible for absorbing Carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The trees

Corporations also have the power to inflict change that prevents deforestation from getting worse. They can establish strict policies intended to protect the Amazon rainforest. This will force those involved in the deforestation industry to take accountability for their actions since they would now have incentives.

To inflict change on a greater scale, however, the government must do its part by implementing more conservation laws specifically rendered to protect those who inhabit the Amazon. Making sure that we support treaties such as the Convention on Climate change and Convention and International Trade in Endangered Species can also make play a big role in fighting against deforestation.

We as a collective can also make a difference in fighting deforestation by just simply educating ourselves and taking an effort to make better choices as it pertains to the environment. Although a lot of damage has been done to the Amazon rainforest, we still have the power to enact change that will better our planet for the future to come.

What we can do to stop deforestation involves finding alternative ways to help decrease the need for tree deforestation in the first place. Since cattle ranching is the main reason for deforestation in Brazil, it would be ideal for farmers to find more sustainable ways to farm while also finding new farming technologies to eliminate their need for more land.

A more direct approach to combat the effects of deforestation would be restoration. We can replant the trees in the areas that have been impacted by deforestation while also letting the forest regenerate over time. As this may take a while to accomplish it is certainly a step in the right direction.

Deforestation causes a major concern as it pertains to increasing greenhouse gases. The depletion of trees allows for the excess amount of greenhouse gasses to be released into the atmosphere. Too many greenhouse gasses being released into the atmosphere will ultimately contribute to the global warming crisis

One important benefit that trees were able to do was produce their own water which helps regulate the water cycle. But with deforestation having to reduce the number of trees in the forest, this causes less water to be in the air which is supposed to be returned back into the soil. As a result, the texture of soil gets dryer than it should be, and in turn, affects the growth rate of crops.

We must also consider how deforestation negatively affects the home of human inhabitants. As mentioned before, Amazon provides millions of people with shelter, food, and everyday necessities. But with deforestation in the works, they are essentially forced to deal with the negative repercussions which are just morally and ethically wrong.

Introduction

Sustainability means to be maintained and a lifestyle where you reduce the earth’s natural resources. I have chosen sustainable living because it is good for the environment and society plus it reduces people’s usage of resources and encourages them to use natural resources. It’s also because I think it’s important to have sustained life and society to make things easier now so you don’t struggle later. I am really interested in how sustainable living does or does not change someone’s lifestyle, most people think it’s useless and not helpful because, they think that sustainability means environmental conservation but for me it’s also about people and their health but, why do they think sustainable living won’t help them have a better lifestyle? Do they struggle or not? Does sustainable living get harder or easier for people? I hope to find out more about that and also if all countries have a sustainable living and if they do, how does it change their lifestyle. The main key elements of sustainable development (environmental, society and economy). The pros and cons of sustainable living.

Findings

There are three main elements of sustainability that helps people have a better lifestyle. Social, environmental, and economic sustainability. If a country has all three elements of sustainable development maintained, people will have a better lifestyle. Social sustainability is a process for creating sustainable successful places that promote wellbeing, by understanding people’s needs. It’s also the ability of a community to develop structures which not only meet the needs of people but also support the ability of future generations. For example, good schools for education, hospitals, and housing. Economic sustainability is more about business and profits. A very good example of economic and social sustainability (sustainable architecture) is the Burj Khalifa. It’s not only the tallest building but the advantage is that it’s a tourist place and around 1.8 million people visit Burj Khalifa every year, which also means great profit. Environmental sustainability is the rates of renewable resource harvest, pollution creation, and non-renewable resource depletion. In order to have a healthy community, we need clean air, natural resources, and a nontoxic environment. Environmental sustainability can help have a healthy lifestyle. People can have a better lifestyle by getting a good education, proper care in hospitals when they are sick, which is social sustainability. Environmental sustainability will help people have a better lifestyle by having a hygienic environment which means fewer diseases.

Problems and solutions

One of the problems of sustainable development is overpopulation. Overpopulation can give negative outcomes of environmental and economic sustainability. It increases the pressure on the planet’s resources. It can cause global warming, loss of fresh water and deforestation. People cut many trees for resources like rubber and certain medicines. When people cut trees, there is also a loss of habitat and extinction of animals. It reverses the effects of carbon sequestration and releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, which is bad for humans. People will not be able to have a good lifestyle without good health. Theirs is a lot of loss for fresh water, 75% of the earth is covered in water. 97.5% of that is ocean and 2.5% is freshwater. Most of the freshwater is either unreachable or too polluted, leaving with less than 1% of freshwater. The solution to stop overpopulation can be spreading awareness and education about overpopulation, also providing universal access to intrauterine (birth control) devices and family planning and to convince leaders to commit to stabilizing population growth. For deforestation, the solution is to plant the double amount of tress that has been cut down.

Opinion

In my opinion, sustainable living is important because it can help have an easy life and my opinion hasn’t changed. If there’s no sustainable living, in a country, then people have to suffer a lot. There are countless animals who go extinct because of deforestation and the lack of trees and habitat. Fish are found full of cancers when people go fishing. If in a country people make so much waste by buying and throwing away, which only causes more diseases and bad health, then I think the government of any country should make laws to keep the country sustainable and for people’s happy and healthy lifestyle. If people and the government help in preserving issues like cutting trees, ending poverty and finding solutions to end all the issues that people will have to face if there’s no sustainability, everyone will have a better lifestyle then. According to me, environmental sustainability should be very well maintained to have a better lifestyle than having a more sustainable living in social and economic sustainability. In total, I think the government should make strict laws for people’s sustainable living and their benefit. Laws like limiting cutting trees, and donating money to the poor as well as the charity.

Summary and conclusion

I have discovered the main elements of sustainable development which are environmental, economic and social sustainability. Three of these elements are necessary for a sustainable living and better lifestyle. I also learned the problems for sustainable development and how the people and people’s lifestyle will be affected if there’s no sustainable living in a country. Some of the problems I discovered was overpopulation and because of overpopulation, there is a limited supply of the world’s non-renewable resources, as well as more deforestation. Sustainable living does change someone lifestyle. For example, imagine a country doesn’t have economic sustainability, and businesses are in loss. How would a person have a maintained life without money, and if there’s no money then no food, no water, and no place to live. In the other hand, if a person did have all these things, that person will have a happy lifestyle. For example, there’s a lot of air pollution in a country and maybe that bad air caused someone having asthma and having other diseases which could affect the lung. And, if u have bad health and don’t have an environmentally sustainable country then a person will have a bad and an unhealthy lifestyle. This is why sustainable living is important and it helps people have a better lifestyle.

Sources

1. https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/15-ideas-for-sustainable-living.php
2. https://esg.adec-innovations.com/about-us/faqs/what-is-social-sustainability/
3. https://gulfnews.com/business/burj-khalifa-is-an-outstanding-example-of-sustainable-architecture-1.563396
4. https://thearabianpost.com/tap/2014/02/burj-khalifa-is-dubais-most-visited-tourist-attraction.html
5. http://www.thwink.org/sustain/glossary/EnvironmentalSustainability.htm
6. https://www.thebalancesmb.com/how-overpopulation-impacts-the-environment-4172964
7. https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-solutions-of-overpopulation.php
8. http://www.everythingconnects.org/overpopulation-effects.html
9. http://www.everythingconnects.org/overpopulation-solutions.html
10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdK0uYjy85o

Introduction

In the past wolves once roamed the UK and played a vital part in keeping the wild deer populations under control through hunting. However,in the 17th-18th they were hunted to extinction and because of this it has allowed the wild deer populations to skyrocket. With no natural predators the wild deer has thrived and have gotten to the point where they are venturing onto roads and into public areas where they cause road accidents, destroy crops and become hazards to the public. According to an article from BBC news (written on 14 May 2019) it is estimated that up to 74,000 deer-related accidents can occur with 400 injured motorists each year in britain. Reintroducing wolves to the UK may reduce this number as they will prey on the deer and bring their populations down to more manageable levels. Reintroducing wolves to the UK would also bring conservation benefits as the wolf breed that may be reintroduced would be the Red wolf (Canis rufus) which is labeled as critically endangered by the IUCN red list.

Wolf Reintroductions To Other Areas

Bangs. E (2008) describes a recovery plan to reintroduce wolves to Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho as part of a wolf restoration plan for the northern Rocky Mountains of the United States. According to Bangs. E (2008) there were strong debates and disagreements to reintroduce wolves to Yellowstone and Idaho that lasted for around two decades as reintroducing the wolves were seen as“non-essential and experimental under Section 10 (j) of the federal Endangered Species Act.” Bangs. E (2008) however, the plan was finally approved in 1994 but the wolves weren’t introduced to the park until January 1995 where 29 wolves were released. Since then no livestock have been killed and the packs have thrived and reproduced.

Houston. D (2003) describes what happens after the wolves were released into Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho and because of this the research done by Houston. D (2003) can easily be tied into the research done by Hayward. M (2009) and Bangs. E (2008). Houston. D (2003) it states that ever since reintroducing wolves into Yellowstone and Idaho the moose, elk and coyote population numbers have been decreased due to the wolves hunting them and also because of the reintroduction of the wolves it says the ecosystem can once again support the large carnivores.

Hayward. M (2009) states that the wolves used in Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho wolf reintroduction were all captured from Canada and were reintroduced because of the Endangered Species Act (1973) and the National Park Service policy wanted a restoration of ‘natural’ conditions. Like Houston. D (2003) said, it was only after two decades of public debate over the risks of reintroducing the wolves did they finally decide to go ahead with the reintroduction plan and the wolves were caught and reintroduced (as stated by Bangs. E (2008) and that the reintroduction plan was complete only after 2 years instead of the 3-5 years that was the estimated time it would take for the reintroduction to be complete. The plan was considered a success and by 2007 there were an estimated 1500 wolves there that populated the Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho.

When reintroducing the wolves Bangs. E (2008) stated that “29 wolves were captured in Alberta and transported to Yellowstone National Park (14) and central Idaho (15).” and that “After 5 months in the wild, at least 13 of 15 Idaho‐released wolves were alive within the intended area, as were 13 of 14 Yellowstone wolves; one wolf was known to have been illegally killed in each area” Bangs. E (2008). He then went on to say that the wolves had killed no livestock in that time.

Impacts Wolves Have Had When Reintroduced And Impacts They Already Make

Data regarding the impacts the wolves in yellowstone as well as a few other places such as North Carolina has been collected and with it we can predict the impacts the wolves may have to other countries such as the UK. In an article by Chamberlain. M (2016) it states that during a 2009-2011 study GPS systems were placed on the critically endangered red wolves (Canis rufus) that live on the Albemarle Peninsula of Eastern North Carolina in order to track the space used by the wolves and their habitat selection. The “wolves maintained spatially stable home ranges that varied between 25 km2 and 190 km2” Chamberlain. M (2016).

Another article by Brotas. G (2015) studied the diet Endangered Iberian Wolf (Canis lupus signatus) have when living in a Human-Dominated Landscape in Central Portugal. A total of 295 wolf scats were collected from 2011 to 2014 on a monthly basis which indicated that the wolves have a high dependence on livestock. The result showed that “Domestic goat predominated the diet (62% of the scats), followed by cow (20%) and sheep (13%); the only wild ungulate present in the scat analysis was the wild boar (4% of the scats)” Brotas. G (2015). This fact could cause problems if wolves were reintroduced to the UK as it indicates that the wolves may prefer to prey on livestock rather than the wild deer.

However, this study was based on wolves that lived in populated areas where little large wild game such as deer can be found. A book by Yuskavitch. J (published 2005) which also contained a section on the predicted feeding patterns and diets of the grey wolves from yellowstone state that “reintroduced wolves would prey mainly on deer and elk, but could also be expected to occasionally kill livestock”Yuskavitch. J (published 2005). It was estimated that “a population of 100 wolves in Yellowstone would kill up to 1200 deer or elk, as many as 20 cows and 70 sheep per year”Yuskavitch. J (published 2005). These figures are more likely to occur as they wolves reintroduced to the UK would most likely be placed in wildlife parks that are away from largely populated areas and farms.

In an article by Houston. D (2003) it states that wolves from yellowstone crossed to Isle Royale which had an overabundant moose population. The wolves slowly reduced the moose populations to manageable numbers and have kept them low for many years. This allowed the forest to recover by reducing browsing by the moose. However, in the 1980’s the wolves were wiped out from Isle Royale due to humans introducing the wolves to parvovirus. Because of this the moose populations grew again until a catastrophic starvation hit in 1990. Houston. D (2003) also stated that in regards to the Yellowstone wolves “elk are the primary prey for wolves in the park year-round, representing 92% of 1582 wolf kills recorded from 1995 to 2001”Houston. D (2003). It was also stated that, like on Isle Royale the Yellowstone wolves helped with vegetation and forest regrowth by reducing the number of browsing and grazing animals such as moose and elk.

When looking at potential impacts things such as cross breeding between the wolves and other species such as dogs should be considered. In a study by Fredrickson. R (2007) it was stated that “ A number of coyote‐red wolf hybrid litters were observed in the late 1990s in the reintroduced red wolf population” Fredrickson. R (2007). This could indicate that if wolves were reintroduced to the UK they could breed with stray dogs and make wolf-dogs. Another factor that could affect the pet dog population in the UK if wolves were reintroduced would be the spread of canine diseases such as canine parvovirus (CPV), canine distemper virus (CDV) etc. A study by Almberg. E (2012) about parasite invasion following the Yellowstone wolf reintroduction showed that after the wolf reintroduction to yellowstone the wolves populations were not managed which led to them becoming susceptible to infections.

The study then went on to state that within a year of their reintroduction the unvaccinated wolves showed signs of several viral infections. It was said that “by 1997, 100 percent (18/18) of the wolves sampled across the park tested positive for exposure to CPV and 61 percent (11/18) tested positive for canine adenovirus type-1 (CAV-1). By 1997, 63 per cent (12/19) of wolves tested positive for canine herpesvirus (CHV)” Almberg. E (2012). This could cause problems as it would help spread these diseases from dog to wolf and may wipe out any reintroduced wolves. A way to counter this could be to ensure dogs are kept well away from the wolves and to capture and vaccinate the wolves yearly.

Introduction

Recently, infectious diseases are found to be most frequent among occupational diseases. Discovery of occupational infectious diseases had heaps of ripple effects within the field of occupational medication and industrial hygiene. Occupational infections, including parasitic diseases, can limit the vary of applied diagnostic and certification procedures solely to diseases evoked by pathogenic agents or by exposures occurring within the occupational environment. In some cases, it becomes tough or perhaps not possible identify the real cause of patients’ complaints. Occupational biohazards are infectious agents or hazardous unsafe biological materials that exert harmful effects on workers’ health, either directly thorough damage to the working environment, and it also can embody medical waste or samples of a micro-organism, virus, or toxin from a biological source.

The occupational infectious diseases are commonly found as part of a systemic infection involving the respiratory organs in immunocompromised workers. There has been a lot of discussion on biological hazards at work, their diagnosis, and treatment. Known etiological causes of the disease are increasing and include occupational factors. Two main groups of biological agents are regarded as occupational biohazards:

• Allergenic and/or toxic agents forming bioaerosols, causing occupational diseases of the respiratory tract and skin, primarily in agricultural workers; and
• Agents causing zoonoses and other infectious diseases that could be spread by tick or insect vectors, through various exposure routes. Bioaerosols are biological particles of organic dust and/or droplets suspended in the air, such as viruses, bacteria, endotoxin, fungi, secondary metabolites of fungi, particles of feces, bodies of mites and insects, and feather, hair, feces, and urine of birds and mammals. They often induce disorders of the respiratory system or skin. Bioaerosols are a main health problem in agriculture, medical or veterinary facilities, diagnostic laboratories, plants producing biofuel from rape blossoms, the metallurgical industry, libraries, and even art conservation.

As corona virus, the cause of Atypical Pneumonia, it has brought unprecedented challenge to the safety and health of the frontline workers in the medical profession, healthcare services, cleaning service and property management all over the world. These frontline workers remain steadfastly at their posts during this very difficult time are under the constant threat of the killer virus. The Occupational Safety and Health Council has prepared Practical Guide to provide guidance on the proper use of personal protective equipment and the sterilizing agents, so that these dedicated workers can protect themselves adequately in the fight against this biological hazard.

What is Biological hazard?

Biological hazards refer to organisms or organic matters produced through these organisms which can be harmful to human health. These consist of bacteria, fungi, toxins from biological sources, spores, parasites, viruses, pathogenic micro-organisms, bio-active substances and protein. In general, there are three important routes of entry for those micro-organisms into our body. For example, through the respiratory system, transmission through contact with body fluids of the infected, or with contaminated objects. The harmful effects posed to human health with the aid of these biological hazards are mainly of three types – infections, allergy, and poisoning.

Work-Places where people may come into contact with biological hazards :

• Healthcare services.
• Medical staff: Dental worker, embalmer, health care worker
• Cleaning staff.
• laboratory technicians in the medical profession. Cleaning services.
• Property management.
• Employees in environmental hygiene services such as liquid waste and rubbish collection.
• Fishery, Animal breeder, animal caretaker, animal scientist, farmer and rancher, farmworker, laboratory animal worker, hunter and trapper, wildlife biologist and veterinary services
• Manufacturing industries that use plant or animal based raw materials such as paper, textile, leather and furs.
• Agriculture, forestry, horticulture, animal food and fodder production
• Working areas with air conditioning systems and high humidity (e.g., textile industry, print industry, and paper production)

*Any microorganism breeding inside the air-conditioning system or cooling towers may spread in the workplace through the air-conditioning system.

*In the office building, the furnishing materials like carpets and wallpapers, the potted plants and places that are wet and damp or utensils that hold water are likely to be the breeding ground for microorganisms.

Building and construction industry, processing of natural materials such as clay, straw, and reed; building redevelopment [13].

Classification of biological hazard:

Biological hazards are classified for transportation according to UN number:

• Category A, UN 2814 – Infectious substance, affecting humans: An infectious substance in a form capable of causing permanent disability or life-threatening or fatal disease in otherwise healthy humans or animals when exposure to it occurs.
• Category A, UN 2900 – Infectious substance, affecting animals (only): An infectious substance that is not in a form generally capable of causing permanent disability or life-threatening or fatal disease in otherwise healthy humans and animals when exposure to themselves occurs.
• Category B, UN 3373 – Biological substance transported for diagnostic or investigative purposes. Regulated Medical Waste, UN 3291 – Waste or reusable material derived from medical treatment of an animal or human, or from biomedical research, which includes the production and testing.

Risk Groups:

The risks are categorized into different risk groups to simplify how risks from different living organisms should be managed.

• Risk Group 1 – (low individual and community risk). The hazards included in the first risk group are not known to make humans ill; the group includes bee venom, as well as various toxins secreted by plants, snake venom, etc.
• Risk Group 2 – (moderate individual risk, limited community risk). The hazards included in the second risk group may make humans ill and are thus a risk to the health of employees but are not accompanied by the risk of infection for the wider population; there are efficient prevention and treatment methods for these hazards. This includes legionellosis or legionnaires’ disease and Lyme borreliosis. COVID-19 is caused by a novel coronavirus which is today officially known as SARS-CoV-2 (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2). Coronaviruses are currently placed in the second risk group in the classification of biological hazards, but the entire directive concerning these issues is being revised and updated by the European Commission and it is known that they are planning to move the older family members of COVID-19, such as SARS (Severe acute respiratory syndrome) and MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome) to the third risk group. Thus, it cannot be ruled out that the virus which causes COVID-19 will be consequently classified to a higher risk group.
• Risk Group 3 – (high individual risk, low community risk). The hazards of the third risk group may cause severe illnesses for humans and are thus a serious threat to the health of the employee and may be accompanied by the risk of infection for the wider population, but there are efficient prevention and treatment methods for these hazards. This risk group includes hepatitis, or jaundice, and pneumonia.
• Risk Group 4 – (high individual and community risk). The hazards of the fourth risk group cause severe illnesses for humans, are thus a serious threat to the health of the employee and may be accompanied by the risk of infection for the wider population; there are usually no efficient prevention and treatment methods for these hazards. This risk group includes the Ebola virus.

Biosafety levels

There are also four Biosafety levels which give the containment precautions which need to be used to control different biohazards. The levels of containment range from the lowest biosafety level 1 to the highest at level 4.

• Biosafety Level 1 – Little containment or segregation of the facility but with precautions such as separation and labelling of waste materials.
• Biosafety Level 2 – Staff have specific training in handling pathogenic agents, access to the laboratory is limited when work is being conducted, extreme precautions are taken with contaminated sharp items; and certain procedures in which infectious aerosols or splashes may be created are conducted in biological safety cabinets.
• Biosafety Level 3 – All procedures involving the manipulation of infectious materials are conducted within biological safety cabinets or other physical containment devices, or by personnel wearing appropriate personal protective clothing and equipment. The laboratory has special engineering and design features such as double-door access zones.
• Biosafety Level 4 – The facility is either in a separate building or in a controlled area within a building. The facility has controlled ventilation maintaining it under negative pressure. All activities are carried out in Class III biological safety cabinets, or Class II biological safety cabinets used with one-piece positive pressure personnel suits ventilated by a life support system.

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses which may cause illness in animals or humans. In humans, several coronaviruses are known to cause respiratory infections ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The most recently discovered coronavirus causes coronavirus disease COVID-19.

COVID-19 is the infectious disease caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus. This new virus and disease were unknown before the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. COVID-19 is now a pandemic affecting many countries globally.

• People can catch COVID-19 from others who have the virus.
• The disease spreads primarily from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth, which are expelled when a person with COVID-19 coughs, sneezes, or speaks. These droplets are relatively heavy, do not travel far and quickly sink to the ground. People can catch COVID-19 if they breathe in these droplets from a person infected with the virus. This is why it is important to stay at least 1 meter (3 feet) away from others.

These droplets can land on objects and surfaces around the person such as tables, doorknobs and handrails.

People can become infected by touching objects or surfaces that has the virus on it, then touching their eyes, nose or mouth. This is why it is important to wash your hands regularly with soap and water or clean with alcohol-based hand rub.

Covid-19 symptoms

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, dry cough, and tiredness. Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but only have very mild symptoms. Most people (about 80%) recover from the disease without needing hospital treatment. Around 1 out of every 5 people who gets COVID-19 becomes seriously ill and develops difficulty breathing. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart and lung problems, diabetes, or cancer, are at higher risk of developing serious illness. However, anyone can catch COVID-19 and become seriously ill. Even people with very mild symptoms of COVID-19 can transmit the virus. People of all ages who experience fever, cough and difficulty breathing should seek medical attention.

How to protect the work environment from Covid-19?

• Make sure the workplaces are clean and hygienic Surfaces (e.g. desks and tables) and objects (e.g. telephones, keyboards) need to be wiped with disinfectant regularly.
• Promote regular and thorough hand washing by employees, contractors and customers by
• displaying posters promoting hand washing, put sanitizing hand rub dispensers in prominent places around the workplace and to make sure these dispensers are regularly refilled.
• Promote good respiratory hygiene in the workplace by displaying posters promoting respiratory hygiene.
• Provide face masks and paper tissues at the workplaces, for those who develop a runny nose or cough at work, along with closed bins.
• For anyone who need to travel to work stay at home and to work from home.
• Any employee with serious health issue stays work at home.
• Provide good internet connection for employees that work from home.
• Keep communicating and promoting the message that people need to stay at home even if they have just mild symptoms of Covid-19.
• Make clear to employees that they will be able to count this time off as sick leave.

Conclusion

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. Most people infected with the COVID-19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer are more likely to develop serious illness.

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6. Haz-Map. Control of communicable diseases manual; “Occupational Infections” in Rom; “Occupational Infections” in LaDou. p. 280–1 [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): U.S. National Library of Medicine; 2012 [cited 2014 Mar 25]. Available from: http://www.haz-map.com/infect.htm.
7. https://www.tooelu.ee/en/Employee/Working-environment/Hazards-of-the-working-environment/Biological-hazards/Corona-virus-as-a-biological-hazard
8. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/who-rights-roles-respon-hw-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=bcabd401_0

I am more in favor of FC rather than against it

Forest is an important feature of our planet which are providing a renewable source of energy, helping mitigate climate change, and is home to many terrestrial species. In order to maintain all of these features, sustainable forest management is a key factor. Increased concern among environmental NGOs and other stakeholders over global forest degradation, following irresponsible industrial logging and the failure of governments to tackle the problem, caused the need for forest certification schemes (Auld et al., 2008).

The creation of private or non-state forest certification was started by the environmental movement after the lack of success during the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio in 1992. Fear of the degradation of the world’s forests gave an incitement to create a responsible use of the world’s forests. The Forest Stewardship Certification (FSC) was founded in Toronto, Canada in 1994 and introduced to Sweden in 1997 (Auld et al., 2008).

The FSC is a certification program that works by laying down a series of standards to guide forest companies toward sustainable management. The main ideas were to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management. The monitoring is being made by independent third-party auditors. The certification scheme is based on 10 principles and 56 criteria. Some of the principles are that the social and economic well-being of workers shall be maintained or enhanced, and that ecosystem services and environmental values shall be maintained by the organization. FSC claims to have the highest environmental consideration within forestry with more than 800 members around the world (FSC Worldwide, 2019). Producers who meet environmental standards can then label their products in the marketplace, allowing them to potentially achieve greater market access and receive higher prices for their products (Villalobos et al., 2018).

Many forest producers objected to the setup and design of FSC since social- and environmental interests might outvote economic interests, due to the fact that the World Wild Fund (WWF) and NGOs were key players in its creation. European forest owners’ associations joined together to form what would eventually become the Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), in order to facilitate the mutual recognition of national schemes and to provide them a common ecolabel (Auld et al., 2008).

It may seem that certification most closely fits within the category of information-based environmental governance. The certification attempts to steer the behavior of consumers through the provision of information to support environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable forest management. It encourages consumers to choose products with an eco-label or certification. There are also other types of governance linked to certification such as incentives (carrots) and institutions (sticks). The promise of wider market access and price premiums for certified goods could work as an incentive for certification for producers and other value chain actors. Institutions (sticks) play a vital role in the development of certification programs. Standard-setters like FSC and PEFC revise their standard in line with well-institutionalized ‘best practices set out by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO), the ISEAL Alliance, and other meta-governance organizations (van der Ven & Cashore, 2018).

Forest certification has generated vast attention in forestry as a means to address deforestation and forest degradation by promoting improved environmental and social outcomes in forest management criteria. Thereby, the global area of certified forests has grown significantly and reached approximately 438 million ha in 2014. The majority of the certified area were in temperate and boreal climatic domains (Villalobos et al., 2018). Most certified forests are not located in tropical countries for which concern about unsustainable timber harvesting practices is greatest (Klingberg, 2002).

The legitimacy of FSC is questioned both globally and nationally. As a private-led market instrument, it does not have the democratic instruments introduced by elected governments. Forest companies and forest owners usually participate in FSC due to pressure from the supply chain and/or from some stakeholder groups, such as NGOs, local communities, or the state (Niedzialkowski & Shkaruba, 2018).

Initially, only products with 100 % FSC content had access to the label but the rules have since been changed and gradually reduced the percent thresholds, introducing new restrictions delineating acceptable non-FSC content (Auld et al., 2008). Even if this lower the demands for FSC certification, a positive outcome could be that more companies are able to achieve the demands for certification. The question is if quantity or quality leads to more beneficial social, ecological and economical outcomes from the certification.

Forest-rich developing countries argue that certification would work as a trade barrier for their timber. Certification schemes are founded by developed countries to reduce forest degradation in the southern hemisphere. The guidelines could be difficult to obtain in developing countries with limited financial resources. Thus, the certification schemes put a lot of pressure on producers of timber in developing countries. It seems a bit unfair that developed countries try to lecture developing countries on how they should manage their forest, considering the previous deforestation and forest degradation during the industrial era.

One can argue that forest certification schemes can be questioned since they do not solve the deforestation and forest degradation in the tropical forest. It mainly focuses on sustainable forest management in temperate- and boreal climate domains in the northern hemisphere. It is a way for producers of forest products in developed countries to labor their products. On the other hand, it is better than nothing. Deforestation and forest degradation is a global issue that has not yet been solved by international agreements and treaties during several climate meetings. Forest certification schemes have put an effort into obtaining sustainable forest management globally. Many members have joined the organization and the area of certified forests is increasing. Even if improvements need to be made, certified forests are better for the environment than conventionally logged ones.

In Sweden, the main part of the forest owners is certified by FSC and PEFC. The certification scheme puts more pressure on forest management than the Swedish Forestry Act. Through the certification scheme, the forest owners believe to be sustainable in their forest management. Criticism towards the certification schemes in Sweden is that they may not be enough to avoid accelerated losses of the old-growth forest and intensive timber production which have serious consequences for biodiversity conservation due to loss of habitats. Villalobos et al. (2018) claim that certification has not halted forest degradation since it has not improved any of the environmental outcomes.

Improvements could be that producers, value chain actors, standard setters, and scholars should focus on collecting and sharing better data on existing indicators of forest certification impacts. This includes measures such as aggregate deforestation, soil erosion, wages, and social conditions in the working force. Another issue is the monitoring of certified forests in developing countries. Especially illegal logging can be very hard to trace in the supply chain.

Forest certification is a suitable option to solve a problem that international agreements could not achieve. It has led to a decrease in forest degradation in boreal- and temperate forests to some extent. However, the main issue of deforestation and degradation of tropical- and subtropical forests have not been solved by FSC and PEFC. Finally, certified forests are better for the environment than conventionally logged ones. Therefore forest certification is beneficial to achieve more sustainable forest management globally.

References

1. Auld, Graeme, Gulbrandsen, Lars H., and McDermott, Constance L. “Certification Schemes and the Impacts on Forests and Forestry.” Annual Review of Environment and Resources 33 (2008): 187–211. Web.
2. Klingberg, Tage. ”A European View of Forest Issues for Consideration.” Högskolan i Gävle (2002): Working Paper no 18. Editor: Research and Development Committee
3. Niedziałkowski, Krzysztof, and Shkaruba, Anton. “Governance and Legitimacy of the Forest Stewardship Council Certification in the National Contexts – A Comparative Study of Belarus and Poland.” Forest Policy and Economics 97 (2018): 180–188. Web.
4. Villalobos, Laura, Coria, Jessica, and Nordén, Anna. “Has Forest Certification Reduced Forest Degradation in Sweden?” Land Economics 94.2 (2018): 220–238. Web.
5. van Der Ven, Hamish, and Cashore, Benjamin. “Forest Certification: The Challenge of Measuring Impacts.” Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability 32 (2018): 104–111. Web.
6. FSC Worldwide. “FSC Principles & Criteria – Defining best practice in global forest management. (2019): Forest Stewardship Council (https://ic.fsc.org/en/what-is-fsc-certification/principles-criteria) [2019-02-22]

Forest degradation occurs when forests lose their ability to provide essential goods and services to people and nature itself. This means the quality reduction and decrease of the condition of a forest, this being related to various ecosystem components of a forest ecosystem such as soil and vegetation layers, to diverse interactions between these components and their functioning. Due to several natural and human-induced driving forces, forest degradation presents a variety of impacts that needs to be effectively addressed. The major impacts of forest degradation are soil erosion, greenhouse gas emissions, loss of biodiversity, and the disruption of the water cycle. Due to this, governments, communities, and individuals of Pacific Island nations may adopt strategies such as forest restoration, logging bans, establishing protected forest areas, and using sustainable logging methods, to reduce the widespread ramifications of forest degradation.

Soil erosion is the wearing down of the forest’s topsoil by natural physical forces such as wind and water and human-induced driving forces of deforestation such as the construction of logging roads. (Ritter, J, 2012). Once plant roots are removed to a great extent, there are no roots to stabilize the soil during heavy rain, which then washes away the top soil and the nutrients within it. This then leads to widespread impacts on forests and marine ecosystems. In Kolombangara, the Solomon Islands, large sediments have been deposited into waterways and rivers due to soil erosion caused by logging roads that have deep tire marks which erode at a rapid rate during rain. This saturates the waterways with excess nutrients, affecting the turbidity and the PH levels of the waterways. This ultimately affects the trophic structure of these ecosystems. Therefore, soil erosion is a serious impact on forest degradation.

Agricultural land clearing (forest degradation) can accelerate the emission of greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases (e.g. Carbon dioxide) are heat-absorbing gasses that trap the heat within the earth’s atmosphere, causing the climate to heat up. Apart from producing oxygen and water, trees are absorbents of carbon dioxide, which absorb 2.4 billion tonnes per year (IUCN, 2017). Whilst forests are not degraded, they function as efficient greenhouse gas filters. But, as soon as they are degraded, the remaining levels of carbon dioxide left in their trunks and leaves are then released into the atmosphere; contributing to at least 30% of greenhouse gas emissions each year (Johnson, T.2019.Council on Foreign Relations.). This then affects organisms such as plants, humans, and animals and contributes significantly to the increased possibility of the occurrence of natural disasters due to the warming of the climate. Thus, the alarming rate of forest degradation has impacted the dynamics of the climate, due to its contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

Thirdly, over-logging of forests may induce the loss of biodiversity which means vulnerable species may face the possibility of extinction. According to WWF experts, ‘the rapid loss of species we are seeing is estimated to be between 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate’. When forests are being degraded and destructed, habitats of certain organisms are being destroyed and therefore, their population may decrease. This affects the feeding relationship between organisms (Johnson, S. Scienciing. 2019). For example, if species like frogs are wiped out, it may affect the population of predators such as the endangered kingfisher bird (see the figure who relies on frogs as a source of food. This is because each part of an ecosystem is dependent on other parts and if an organism dies, then it may have far-reaching ramifications on the trophic structure (food web) of the forest ecosystem. Therefore, loss of biodiversity is a major impact of overlogging.

Lastly, increased land clearing for mining may induce the disruption of the water cycle. Evapotranspiration is an element of the water cycle that refers to the ability of trees to extract moisture from the ground and release it into the atmosphere, thus, contributing to precipitation across nearby ecosystems. Forests also possess the ability to retain moisture from precipitation, allowing discharge into waterways. However, when 13 million hectares of trees are being removed for certain purposes per annum (Carbon Footprint, 2018), the forests’ ability to store water and release water into the atmosphere is destroyed. This means forests may experience reduces rainfall causing forests to be barren and dry. (Pearce, F. 2019, Yale Environment 360). This then hinders the water cycle process and therefore, proves conditions for natural disasters like bushfires and drought to take place. Not only that, but it also provides conditions that affect the living conditions of organisms. Therefore, the disruption of the water cycle is a major impact on forest degradation.

Four Strategies Pacific Islands could adopt to minimize and stop Forest Degradation

Forest restoration could help Pacific Island counties reverse the effects of intensive logging, in order to regain the environmental and ecological benefits of the forests. This strategy aims to unite individuals, communities, and governments to work interdependently to identify the most appropriate restoration method within the forest landscapes. This strategy should not only encompass the replanting of trees but also, activities such as erosion control, agroforestry, and forest regeneration. Forest restoration should address the underlying factors that drive the issues to become prevalent within these Pacific Island countries. For example, in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands, communities and individuals have been working to regenerate their degraded forests through small-scale reforestation of logged forests with local and exotic tree species to maximize and increase the availability and sustainability of forest products and services in the future. This is due to the Province having the most tree cover loss than other Islands. Therefore, forest restoration is an appropriate strategy other Pacific Island should implement.

Secondly, the implementation of logging bans is an effective strategy that Pacific Islanders could adopt to reduce the unstainable logging operation and to maintain the forests’ biodiversity. This is a strategy that promotes the preservation and conservation of forests for future generations through the establishment of policies and legislations, aimed at reducing forest degrading activities such as logging that have been operating at an unstainable rate. These bans have been exemplified by the Solomon Islands already, ‘where logging has been operating at a rate 19 times of what is considered sustainable’, according to B. Yein (Cannon, J. 2018. Pacific Standard.). In Central Province (Solomon Islands), the provincial government, alongside community elders and individuals has implemented bans on granting business licenses to logging companies who are aiming to operate within their geographical jurisdiction (Cannon, J, 2018, Mongaby.). Therefore, this is a strategy that other Pacific Island nations should adopt, to reduce the impacts of forest degradation.

Thirdly, Pacific Islands may respond to tendencies for intensive agricultural clearing through the establishment of forest-protected areas. Communities and individuals must comply with this strategy in order for it to be effective in its intent. Such a strategy may attribute immensely to the reduction of detrimental ecological, social, cultural, and economic impacts that are aligned with forest degradation. For example, in Malaita Province, Solomon Islands, a group of community members have implemented a greenbelt throughout the Are Are and Kwaio regions called the Ma’asina Greenbelt Initiative to prevent unsustainable uses of the forest(Radio New Zealand, 2018). This strategy could be adopted by governments, communities, and individuals of Pacific Countries to reduce, and minimize agricultural clearing.

Lastly, local Pacific Island loggers should practice appropriate and sustainable logging techniques to reduce driving forces of forest degradation such as logging. Locals, e.g. in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, who are normally operators of bulldozers and cutting machines, should use appropriate logging techniques, to reduce collateral damage to the forests. These techniques allow loggers Pacific Islander loggers to fall and extract trees in a way that does not damage other tree species. Logging companies and government institutions should implement country-wide initiatives, to advocate and teach local communities and loggers about sustainable methodologies for cutting trees. If this is adopted by Pacific Islanders, it may reduce the widespread impacts of forest degradation.

Conclusion

In conclusion, one can now fully understand and comprehend the impacts of forest degradation such as soil erosion, loss of biodiversity, Greenhouse Gas emissions, and the disruption of the water cycle in regional contexts. However, there are strategies such as forest regeneration, logging bans, protected forest areas, and sustainable logging methods which can be adopted by regional countries to reduce, and minimize the impacts of forest degradation. Nevertheless, it is still necessary to be worried about consuming and being part of the forces that destroy forests in the Pacific.

Current estimates on the number of species present on Earth vary widely but a census conducted by Hawaii University concluded that this number stands at 8.7 million species. Of this number, 1.3 million have been entered into a database so far. This diversity is fundamental for ecosystem stability and ultimately essential if we are to support our continued existence on the planet.

We exist in a period of significant environmental uncertainty largely caused by humankind’s impact on the planet. The current rate and magnitude of extinctions are much higher than previously thought and may be accelerating, which some consider to be leading to the sixth mass extinction. A recent UN report, regarded to be the most comprehensive of its kind, identifies 1 million species as being threatened with extinction. It’s hard to fathom what this means exactly.

The report highlights that agriculture, forestry and urbanisation are the leading reasons for biodiversity loss in land-based ecosystems and rivers. These factors are amplified by underlying social values such as unsustainable consumption and production, concentrated human populations, trade, technological advances, and governance at multiple scales.

We know when it comes to achieving biodiversity, it is equally critical that ecosystems and the large areas they occupy are protected. As biologist Ken Thompson proposes in his book Do We Need Pandas?, if we prioritise the conservation of natural areas, biodiversity will be protected as a side bonus.

As urban designers, we engage in issues around urban development and we can challenge the status quo to create positive change. In a recent competition-winning project undertaken by Hassell in the western Chinese city of Chengdu – located in the Sichuan Province which constitutes the world’s most significant contiguous area of panda habitat – we looked at how current practices of over-development and encroachment into natural habitats could be contained and controlled. We looked at how highly sensitive areas could be left intact, while at the same time allowing economic development to occur in a much more responsible way while creating greater social awareness.

The project challenged us to critically examine the need to support the Giant Panda in terms of conservation but also their broader role within Chengdu as an icon to promote the City’s brand identity and tourism perspective. These interventions were applied across three strategic sites – Dujiangyan (a habitat reserve area), Beihu (a middle ring community area) and Longquan Mountain (a future growth area to the east of the city).

Defining a flagship species

The giant panda itself is what is known as an umbrella species. The concept of umbrella species is the core principle of a conservation strategy that focuses on protecting the habitat of one species in the hope of protecting many others in the same ecosystem.

The Giant Panda is an effective umbrella species because its habitat areas overlaps with many other endemic species within China. In fact over 96% of the panda habitat overlaps with the endemic centres, this includes 70% of China’s forest mammals, 70% of forest birds and 31% of forest amphibians. These species might not otherwise get the public or political attention to support their conservation.

Given the global profile of the Giant Panda, it is particularly effective at getting political and social support, promoting public awareness and raising conservation funds to protect these co-occurring species and habitats.

However, this strategy is not without its challenges, as John Wiens, an ecologist formerly of Colorado State University states: ‘Like all things in ecology, it’s not as simple as it looks.’ Picking the right umbrella species, or more specifically, the large area they inhabit is essential and critical for the approach to be successful.

Ultimately it is also a balancing act: through increased awareness there is increased interest and increased tourist numbers. As Dr Liu of Michigan State University points out, ‘Tourists don’t think they have an impact on panda habitat, but indirectly, each visitor has some impact. They come, they take their summer vacations there and stimulate the local economy, but this in turn uses more local natural resources.’

A clear framework: conservation, education and political incentive

Taking into consideration these competing requirements, our team began by defining a clear framework through which we could align our thinking and the aspirations for the project.

These five principles allowed us to connect the conservation of the panda itself with the restoration of the surrounding habitats underpinned by the political incentives and future custodianship required from future generations.

We applied these five principles to a simple but powerful unifying message of the ‘Panda Trail’ – Explore, Discover and Dream. Through this framework, we leveraged the three key sites identified by the competition and put in place key strategies to best unlock each area’s potential to address these underlying issues, but importantly collectively contributed to the city and the agenda of conservation, education and awareness.

Conservation and rehabilitation

Dujiangyan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, sits to the west of Chengdu and is adjacent to an ancient irrigation system constructed around 256 BC.

The land is prime, highly sensitive natural habitat for the panda and other endemic species and is also where pandas are released into natural environments to develop survival instincts. We worked on the design of this site and recognised the sensitivity of it, placing restrictions on tourism and movement through the environment, safeguarding habitat and containing activity. We enabled tourists to be explorers, where numbers were restricted and the message closely aligned to conservation and preservation of habitat areas. We segmented the target visitor group that would best respond to this site and prevent over tourism of the reserve area.

Education and custodianship

The second site, Beihu is located near the city centre and contains vastly different opportunities. Its proximity to local communities and education platforms make it the ideal site to engage and create places for people to learn about the issues present both locally but also globally. We crafted purposeful journeys that approached the challenge broadly focussing on showcasing local flora and significant cultural displays. Jon Coe a renowned zoological specialist, provided key advice to support the design of habitat areas. We were keen to ensure that the role of these animals in the minds of visitors is reframed. For example, careful design of the enclosures ensuring that the animals were either level or elevated help to reverse the thought that humans are dominant over nature.

City brand and visibility

The final and pivotal site location to the east of the city will serve as a gateway site connecting the future airport, serving as the global front door to Chengdu and an opportunity to showcase the efforts raise awareness and provide political incentive. We used this site as a mechanism to demonstrate how sensitive development can occur through thoughtful integration of blue and green systems as well as frameworks to begin to restore the surrounding landscapes. This site brought together a number ecological aspects and aspirational elements to support the city’s future.

A scaled and holistic approach

Ultimately through this project we aimed to create greater awareness and exposure to these global issues, but we did so in a co-ordinated and targeted way. We leveraged the intrinsic and local values of each site and aligned them to the specific objectives of conservation, education and political incentive. We achieved this in our design regardless of whether we were dealing with protected habitat areas, or targeted and curated journeys for a broad spectrum of tourism depending on the areas sensitivities, or supporting broader city positioning and identity to help with continued fund raising for the Giant Pandas and as a consequence support the regeneration and preservation of critical areas of habitat.

Hassell is committed to supporting ongoing work on the biggest global issue of our time – climate change. Solutions to these issues rely on global thinking and collective solutions across a range of scales from the individual through to government.