A new report released this week has warned that around 60% of the world’s ‘ecosystem services’, which include fresh water, fisheries and air regulation, are being degraded or used unsustainably – and the situation could significantly worsen in the coming decades.

Among the key findings highlighted in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Synthesis report were that human activity has changed ecosystems more in the last 50 years than in any other period in history, although significant policy and institutional changes – which are not currently underway – could reverse the damage.

“Only by understanding the environment and how it works, can we make the necessary decisions to protect it. Only by valuing all our precious natural and human resources can we hope to build a sustainable future,” said Kofi Annan, secretary general of the United Nations, launching the report

The report has been issued as the first in a series of seven documents that will assess the state of global ecosystems and the impact of human activity. It was conducted by 1300 experts from 95 countries.

“The over-riding conclusion of this assessment is that it lies within the power of human societies to ease the strains we are putting on the nature services of the planet, while continuing to use them to bring better living standards to all,” said the MA board of directors in a statement. “Achieving this, however, will require radical changes in the way nature is treated at every level of decision-making and new ways of cooperation between government, business and civil society. The warning signs are there for all of us to see. The future now lies in our hands.”

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