Center for Biological Diversity
Pop X
Q: What's Scarier Than Spiders, Snakes and Bats?

A: A world without spiders, snakes and bats.

These critters are more than just Halloween stand-ins for spookiness -- they're extraordinary, and often extremely helpful, animals that help protect crops and keep ecosystems healthy. And they're facing frightening threats from runaway human population growth and overconsumption.

That's why the Center sent out 35,000 free Endangered Species Condoms to some of the “most haunted” cities in the United States in time for Halloween. We're also asking people to share the message on social media with the #FearExtinction hashtag. Check out our website for shareable memes and more ways to get involved.

Human population could be as high as 12 billion by the end of the century, but the future will be way less scary if we tackle unsustainable population growth and overconsumption today.

For the wild,
Stephanie Feldstein Stephanie Feldstein
Population and Sustainability Director
P.S. Today's world population is: 7,218,468,279. We can still save room for wildlife -- spread the word and share the newsletter below.

Population, Climate Contribute to International Aid Crisis

EarthriseA new warning from United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres says that international aid agencies are reaching a breaking point as climate, population, environment and social justice crises converged to forcibly displace more than 51 million people worldwide in 2013.

"The impacts of climate change, of food insecurity, of water scarcity, of the multiplication of natural disasters, combined with population growth and urbanization, and their impacts on the global environment, all this is making humanitarian needs grow in a dramatic way," Guterres said.

Every day 32,000 people are displaced, dozens of wildlife species are lost forever, and 227,000 people are added to the planet. Between rising sea levels and diminished natural resources, people will continue to be displaced and deserve to be treated with respect for human rights and dignity. UN leaders are urging the international community to step up and address crises like climate change, hunger and unsustainable human population growth before they reach the tipping point.

Read more about how environmental problems are pushing the UN's humanitarian response capacity to its limit and read the Center's statement on immigration and population.

 
 
 
World Vasectomy Day

Florida bristle fern

World Vasectomy Day

The population conversation often focuses on the critical need to expand access to female reproductive health care and education, but now there's a day all about getting the other half involved. On Nov. 7, the second annual World Vasectomy Day, hundreds of doctors around the world will be doing vasectomies to highlight the importance of men sharing the responsibility for family planning. Let's join them in celebrating men who choose to be unsung heroes for their families and the planet. Get involved or find a clinic near you.

Protecting Rare Florida Fern

The Florida bristle fern's habitat has been badly fragmented by development and agriculture, and its remaining habitat is under threat of further loss from the pressures of sea-level rise on one side and Florida's growing human population on the other. But this month the rare plant, with only a few known populations in South Florida, finally received some good news: Following a 2011 agreement with the Center, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed the fern for Endangered Species Act protection.

 
Meatstinction!
Meatstinction video

Meatstinction

Take extinction off your plate

There is a monster that threatens life on the planet, and it may have already found its way onto your plate.

Share the facts with your friends and give them a taste of how to stop Meatstinction with our scary good recipes.

Fight the Meatstinction monster by pledging to reduce your meat consumption by one-third or more.

 
 
Volunteer Spotlight: Taking One-Health on the Road

Allison Hanes"I think most people know there are too many people reproducing too quickly for our planet to keep up with but they don't know how to turn the tide."

Allison Hanes describes herself as a "one-health conservationist" -- someone passionate about advancing the health of people, animals and the environment. That's why she appreciates the Center's interdisciplinary approach to protecting wildlife and the planet.

In the three years since Allison became an Endangered Species Condoms volunteer, she's had conversations about human population and the extinction crisis from New York to California, and has brought our condoms to Africa, Haiti and the Philippines. She enjoys the challenge of widening the circle of population awareness. Her favorite moment? This summer she gave condoms to Wayne Coyne, lead singer of the Flaming Lips, at the Golden Gate Park Outside Lands Festival. "I believe my introduction may have been one of the more unique ones... which says a lot given the eclectic artist he is."

 
Photo credits: Stephanie Feldstein staff photo; Earthrise courtesy Wikimedia Commons/NASA; World Vasectomy Day logo; Florida bristle fern by Keith Bradley, USFWS; Meatstinction video screen capture; Meatstinction logo; Take extinction off your plate; Allison Hanes.
 

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Tucson, AZ 85702-0710
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