No one can deny the importance of biodiversity for sustainable development of the world. The concept of biodiversity collectively describes the vast array of unique living organisms that inhabit the earth, together with the interactions amongst them. It refers to the many species from bacteria, plants, insects, to animals. These species evolve, interact, function, and make up the diverse ecosystems. All species are interconnected, and they depend on one another.
The natural environments and biodiversity have direct and positive impacts on human well-being. Despite being predominantly urban, we are a component of the natural world and dependent on the ecosystems. It is in everyone’s best interest to protect biodiversity, and the first step is to learn more about these species and show our care.
PolyU’s Campus Sustainability Office is therefore determined to engage the staff and students with biodiversity through interesting and inspiring ‘connection’. Its web-based Fauna@PolyU introduces to everyone the wide variety of fauna species on campus. It helps people find nature, enjoy sightings and identify species amid the campus landscape conveniently and easily. It contains information about the features of the species and some real images of them. The most interesting part is about the birds – the description of each of the birds is followed by a clickable link to a recording of a frequently heard call of the bird.
The Office organised two lunch talks in April and May 2019 and revealed the amazing and magnificent world of birds and butterflies in Hong Kong. These activities did more than introducing information on common birds and butterflies. They were the occasions when staff and students learnt to distinguish the different species, know how the birds and butterflies breed and what makes their homes and how city dwellers like us could have affected them.
Biodiversity maintains the health of the earth and its people. We can participate in biodiversity conservation by increasing our knowledge of environmental issues. We can increase our awareness and offer more support to actions that conserve our nature and the various species. It is good to consider our role in biodiversity and to determine what effects we may bring.
