We Can’t Survive With Monoculture… Biodiversity it is!
We need stability — not monoculture.
Because agriculture has been practiced by humans for thousands of years, monoculture has been perfected to the point where we discovered that if we selectively breed individuals of our choosing, we can potentially reach the desired outcome given with the “best” traits. Monoculture is “the raising of crops and livestock to make an entire breed or population have individually identical genes.” This discovery is the reason for domestication of species and the practice of monoculture. Therefore, some believe that monoculture is the answer to a sustainable lifestyle. Simple right?
Actually, monoculture does not take into account for a lot of other factors.
In fact, it can be a very very bad thing. If an epidemic occurred, the disease can contact an individual that has identical genes as the rest, and then completely wipe out the whole population. Monoculture makes crops extremely vulnerable to diseases, especially if all individuals have the same genes. What will we have left if an outbreak happens? “In addition, planting the same species in the same area for thousands of acres for multiple generations quickly depletes the soil nutrients. The single monocultural crop only requires certain nutrients from the soil, so each generation uses up those particular nutrients and wastes the rest that it doesn’t need. This exhausts the soil very quickly and raises the need to clear more natural habitat for agriculture.
Vandana Shiva looks at monoculture of the mind, “As a metaphor, it is best illustrated in the knowledge and practice of forestry and agriculture.” For example, the rainforest in Southeast Asia supply all the food that is needed in the countries of Kavan, Kenyah, the Punan Bah, and the Penan. The people in these countries gather food from the forest and practice swidden agriculture, also known as the land cleared for farming by burning away vegetation. The people depend on the forests as their main source of food and other necessary resources.
Monoculture may seem like a very simple and efficient solution because it can produce an abundance of a single crop, such as a field of corn. In that sense, monoculture is incredibly productive! However, to sustain a whole population of the human kind, unfortunately it is not the most probable solution for our environment, knowing that just one disease can wipe out all the hard work of growing one type of crop.
The idea of biodiversity is that, “Everything is connected in the food web, maintaining balance in the ecosystem.” Our ecosystem is so complex. Every species is interdependent. That way, they can work together as a whole. This creates our complicated networks of the ecosystem. Because of this, “Biodiversity increases the spectrum of life and ensures sustainability for the entire ecosystem, and thus, our world.” Since biodiversity is all intertwined in some sort of way, this creates a strong and stable food system. For example, we see the food chain as an endless cycle. We have the primary consumers, such as cows and insects, that consume plants. Then, we have the secondary consumers, such as cats and snakes, that consume primary consumers. Then, comes the tertiary consumers that consume secondary consumers. Next, we have quaternary consumers, such as owls and crocodiles, that consume tertiary consumers. Last, we have predators, such as sharks and lions, at the top of the food chain. We need biodiversity because if a disease occurs, biodiversity will not let this disease spread and wipe out the whole population like how monoculture would. Biodiversity creates a diverse environment, therefore, we would be able to survive this spread.
We need biodiversity because, reality is, if you are only consuming one thing (or knowledge system), it can harm your body.
Even in a company. If you have all the same Caucasian, male employees (monoculture), it is more likely that the company will not prosper as well as a company with diverse employees (biodiversity). With diverse employees, you have the ability to create better products because you have individuals on the team that have different perspectives and outlooks on issues. I believe that, “Team diversity is one example of thinking global and acting local; where doing ‘the right thing’ in a macro context actually helps at the individual level. Assuming you want to build a globally relevant, meaningful and sustainable company (we do), as opposed to a quick flick acqui-hire, a diverse team will help you win.” At the end of the day, a diverse team makes better decisions than a “monocultured” team. If a company has to face different types of problems, there are different kinds of employees that can help solve the issue. This is relative to our ecosystem — we need diversity in our food pyramid, so we are not consuming only one thing. Being able to have a variety in our food supply allows us to grow and prosper. This becomes the most sustainable lifestyle we can obtain.
Biodiversity is such a complex, yet sustainable community that biologists still haven’t figure out all the different types of species on the planet. However, with diversity, even at a micro-level, we see that everyone has different interests and preferences. This provides the capability to further perspectives and make difficult challenges seen as something so minuscule to overcome compared to the grander scale of things like our interdependent, biodiverse ecosystem.
We stand strong with biodiversity! We refuse to get wiped out!
