Shiva: Biodiversity

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       In this excerpt, Shiva discussed biodiversity and its erosion because of mankind’s domination. Shiva believes that biodiversity is very important for maintaining and creating life. Even the smallest microbe “plays a critical role in maintaining the ecological processes that create the conditions of life for all species, including, of course, our own” (Shiva 41). Each organism was put on this earth for a reason. Every single living thing has a role to play in the ecological system. Some of these roles may not be obvious or seen with our eyes but that does not mean they are not there. Even insects have an important role in the cycle of life. We need diversity in life to survive. A species may not seem necessary to us, but it is to some other species. Tampering with the cycle of life and biodiversity can be a dangerous move, which is something many do not realize since it is all about us in today’s world.

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     I support that all living things do have a reason even though people, including me, may not personally see the reason. Especially with insects, I have trouble seeing their reason for existence. I do admit this is mostly because I hate bugs and do not want them near me. With that being said, I do not believe that all life forms have “a right to evolve freely on their own terms” (Shiva 40). Pertaining to insects of all kinds, if their own terms involves being a bother to me, I do not hesitate to kill them. The fact that there are 950,000 species of insects repulses me. It makes it hard to agree that they all have intrinsic value, but I know they do.

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     According to Shiva, one of the causes of the loss of biodiversity arises from the assumption of empty land (Shiva 56). This assumption is that simply because the land is empty, it is free for us to take over and do with it what we please. This assumption causes us to deny the fact that there were prior inhabitants that had prior rights (Shiva 56). Mankind has always believed that land is theirs for the taking. This is seen since we first started colonizing America. We disregard the prior life that lived in the area and make it our own. We claim the land as ours and establish boundaries. We destroy the land so that it suits our own needs. Most of what we do with the land lacks all consideration for whose home it was before. This is because we believe we are superior; our superiority makes it okay to take what we want.

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        The second cause of biodiversity being lost is “monoculture of the mind” (Shiva 57). This is simply the idea that one way is best. Shiva states that the “shutting out of alternative ways of knowing and making leads to the assumption that the dominant knowledge and techniques are the only option” (Shiva 57). I do not believe that we as a society have one way of thinking and operating. We still have both diversity in general and biodiversity. With this statement, Shiva makes it seem like our biodiversity is inexistent. However, there are a huge variety of species alive and well in the world today. In addition, we know the being diverse is better than being single-minded. We would not have made progress if we did not value the importance of diversity.

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