Biodiversity, the variety of all life on Earth, is crucial for maintaining healthy ecosystems and supporting human wellbeing, providing economic stability and essential ecosystem services like pollination, food security, and clean water. But it’s under threat. Insects and birds are disappearing at alarming rates,^{1 2} while other wildlife populations are facing “mass extinction” events.³

The good news is that people are learning about the importance of biodiversity and taking action to protect and cultivate it, on both the large and small scale. The idea of “No-Mow May,” backyard meadows, and pollinator gardens are spreading through neighborhoods across the country, while large-scale re-wilding projects—a type of ecological restoration aimed at increasing biodiversity and natural ecological processes—and regenerative and organic agriculture are actively working to increase biodiversity on the large scale, with real results. For example, the 2025 State of the Birds Report reports that more than 100 ranches have signed on to the Conservation Ranching program, which “guides grazing practices to create a diverse mosaic of grasslands habitat,” adding up to 3 million acres of restored rangelands from Wisconsin to California. One participating ranch in North Dakota saw a 20 percent increase in the Baird’s Sparrow population in just three years; the Baird’s Sparrow is a “tipping-point” species (one with “perilously” low populations) and has declined more than 67 percent over the last 50 years.⁴

Biodiversity & Organic/Regenerative Agriculture Go Hand-In-Hand

Biodiversity has been called the “backbone of resilient food systems,”⁵ so it should come as no surprise that one of the main tenets in both organic and regenerative agriculture systems is to support and promote biodiversity, a mutually beneficial arrangement. Biodiversity has significant impacts on farms, including improving soil health and fertility, increasing crop resilience to pests and diseases, and enhancing natural pest control and pollination. Biodiverse crops offer adaptability to a changing climate. And just as biodiversity brings a wealth of ecosystem benefits to farms, likewise, farms that protect and cultivate biodiversity have a ripple effect beyond the farm. For example, farmers who incorporate methods to increase biodiversity, such as planting pollinator flowers, meadow strips, hedges, and stands of trees, report seeing an increase in a variety of wildlife on and around the farm. One recent study found that farms that incorporated natural elements or diversified crops had “mammal species abundance and diversity” compared to natural habitat settings. On the other hand, the same mammal species were 32 percent lower on farms without any natural elements (cropland with just one type of crop and cleared of natural vegetation, i.e., monocultures).⁶

These animals do their part too: bats and certain birds keep insect pests under control, deer promote soil fertility, and other mammals like foxes and coyotes keep rodents and other small pests at bay. And as Hickory Nut Gap, a regenerative farm in Western North Carolina reports, “While we maintain a healthy population of predators, we experience minimal negative interactions with our livestock, suggesting they’re finding ample resources in the non-production areas of the farm. By intentionally preserving forested areas, riparian zones, and hedgerows, we’ve created habitats rich in food, water, and shelter for wildlife.”

Organic farms also protect habitats and many different species, on and off the farm, by eschewing the use of toxic chemical pesticides, a major driver of biodiversity loss. A 2025 study analyzed more than 1,700 existing lab and field studies of the impacts of 471 different pesticides on both aquatic and land animals and found negative effects in more than 800 different species. Some of the negative effects included impacts on growth, reproduction, ability to catch prey or find plants to eat, and attracting mates. According to one of the researchers, “Concerningly, we found pervasive negative impacts across plants, animals, fungi, and microbes, threatening the integrity of ecosystems.” Some of the solutions the researchers proposed? Organic farming, natural pest control, and planting wildflowers to support beneficial species.⁷

Another 2025 study published in the journal Environmental Pollution found that pesticide drift, unintended movement of pesticides to non-target areas, not only threatens beneficial species, but “significantly disrupts ecological balances” and “affects non-target species crucial for maintaining biodiversity” up to hundreds of miles away from where the pesticide has been applied. The researchers wrote, “Evidence shows that pesticides are driving severe biodiversity declines, often acting in concert with additional stressors. Herbicides, particularly glyphosate, dicamba, and 2,4-D sprays, have caused significant damage to many non-target plant species…” A loss in plant diversity in turn leads to a loss of diversity among herbivores and predators, resulting in “…less balanced and more often pest-prone ecosystems.”⁸ Organic farming systems, which do not allow the use of any chemical pesticides, work directly against this.

The Time to Act Is NOW

Biodiversity is the web of life. From the fungi and microbes that keep soil healthy and viable to the birds, bats, bees, and other insects that pollinate a third of the food we eat, to the forests that absorb carbon dioxide and the wetlands and grasslands that absorb rain, preventing flooding, to the coral reefs that protect coastlines from storms, humanity is wholly intertwined with biodiversity. But biodiversity is slipping at alarming rates—according to one expert, “…we are witnessing an unprecedented erosion of genetic diversity. This loss is more than just a scientific or environmental concern; it’s a direct threat to global food security, and by extension, human survival.”⁹

Since 1970, a 69 percent decline in biodiversity has been observed¹⁰ and headlines like, “Half the tree of life: ecologists’ horror as nature reserves are emptied of insects,”¹¹ and “Study finds human-driven mass extinction is eliminating entire branches of the tree of life”¹² are becoming all too common. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed, but each of us has the power to act. Support organic and regenerative farms and ranches that are working tirelessly to protect and cultivate biodiversity, advocate for biodiversity in your own community, and actively work on making your own outdoor space a sanctuary for life (see the sidebar for ideas on how to do this!).

I’ll leave you with this quote from Chief Seattle of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes: “Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.”

We are all in this together.

DIY Biodiversity

On a recent morning, I sat on my porch and within minutes recorded the songs of nine different bird species (I love the Merlin Bird ID app). I like to think that in the 10 years of living in my house, I’ve created a safe habitat for birds and beyond. The beauty of it is that you can too! There are so many different ways to cultivate biodiversity in your own outdoor space, whether it’s a balcony or many acres of land.

• Plant native plants and wildflowers, and remove invasive species
• Plant an organic garden
• Avoid using all pesticides
• Put up bird feeders and nesting boxes (bat boxes are great too!)
• Add a bird bath and other water features to provide water for insects and wildlife
• Leave an area of lawn unmowed and designate areas to grow wild
• Create habitats for a variety of species by leaving piles of leaves and brush

These small efforts in our own spaces create vital wildlife sanctuaries and really do make a difference. Take, for example, the eastern bluebird, which was saved from extinction in the mid-19th century when individuals and organizations across the country embraced a movement to set up bluebird nesting boxes—populations have been rebounding since.¹³ Let’s be the change makers!

References

1. McClure, T. (2025, June 3). ‘Half the tree of life’: ecologists’ horror as nature reserves are emptied of insects. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/03/climate-species-col…
2. Victoria_Campbell. (n.d.). Executive Summary. State of the Birds 2025. https://www.stateofthebirds.org/2025/executive-summary/
3. Home. (n.d.). WWF. https://livingplanet.panda.org/en-US/
4. State of the Birds Report United States of America, 2025. https://www.stateofthebirds.org/2025/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/state-o…
5. Elouafi, I. (2024). Why biodiversity matters in agriculture and food systems. Science, 386(6718). https://doi.org/10.1126/science.ads8197
6. Kuipers, K. J. J., Sim, S., Hilbers, J. P., Van Den Berg, S. K., De Jonge, M. M. J., Trendafilova, K., Huijbregts, M. a. J., & Schipper, A. M. (2023). Land use diversification may mitigate on‐site land use impacts on mammal populations and assemblages. Global Change Biology, 29(22), 6234–6247. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16932
7. Comprehensive global study shows pesticides are major contributor to biodiversity crisis. (2025, February 13). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1073470
8. Albaseer, S. S., Jaspers, V. L. B., Orsini, L., Vlahos, P., Al-Hazmi, H. E., & Hollert, H. (2024). Beyond the field: How pesticide drift endangers biodiversity. Environmental Pollution, 366, 125526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2024.125526
9. Elouafi, I. (2024b). Why biodiversity matters in agriculture and food systems. Science, 386(6718). https://doi.org/10.1126/science.ads8197
10. Albaseer, S. S., Jaspers, V. L. B., Orsini, L., Vlahos, P., Al-Hazmi, H. E., & Hollert, H. (2024b). Beyond the field: How pesticide drift endangers biodiversity. Environmental Pollution, 366, 125526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2024.125526
11. McClure, T. (2025b, June 3). ‘Half the tree of life’: ecologists’ horror as nature reserves are emptied of insects. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/03/climate-species-col…
12. Human-driven mass extinction is eliminating entire genera. (n.d.). Stanford University. https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2023/09/human-driven-mass-extinction-…
13. Eastern Bluebird Life History, All about birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology. (n.d.). https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Bluebird/lifehistory