Health, economic stability and nature are interconnected

The unfolding COVID-19 pandemic is having undeniable human and economic impacts. To date, the virus has caused more than 119,000 confirmed deaths worldwide, millions of job losses and stock markets to dive. This pandemic is also a stark reminder of our dysfunctional relationship with nature. The current economic system has put great pressure on the natural environment, and the unfolding pandemic has shone a light on the domino effect that is triggered when one element in this interconnected system is destabilised.

Intact nature provides a buffer between humans and disease, and emerging diseases are often the results of encroachment into natural ecosystems and changes in human activity. In the Amazon, for example, deforestation increases the rates of malaria, since deforested land is the ideal habitat for mosquitoes. Deforested land has also been linked to outbreaks of Ebola and Lyme disease, as humans come into contact with previously untouched wildlife …  READ MORE