1. Draw a system diagram that shows the connections between biodiversity and its cause and effects as discussed in the module.

2. In 100-150 words, explain your module: the ideas and layout rationale behind it.

Beginning with the factors that influence biodiversity, I included climate, topography, and disturbances as affecting stability. Climate includes global warming and other climate changes occurring over time; disturbances consist of both natural disasters and human actions. Changes in either can affect population, habitats, food source (which also affects population), and as a result, affect stability. Instability can cause extinctions, human or other species, decreasing biodiversity.

Biodiversity has multiple benefits: anthropocentric (human-centered values) and ecocentric (nature-centered values). From the former perspective, biodiversity can provide a variety of food sources, and scientific information which leads to discovering more medicine. From the ecocentric point of view, nature assists in purifying water and air, balancing heat in atmosphere, pollinating crops, cycling nutrients, thanks to various organisms and their functions. Not only do healthier air, water, and food profit nature, but these can be considered ecosystem services, services provided by the nature to the humans.

3. In 100-150 words, relate biodiversity and the ecosystem services noticeable by you in your daily life.

First of all, the module shares a ecosystem service that people directly experience. Seemingly trivial, enjoying aesthetic benefits that come with conservation goals can be a big part of human life. For example, national parks are cultural ecosystem services. In fact, I hope to visit Yellowstone National Park and Grand Canyon this summer, and many more in the future.

Also, having moved from Pakistan to America, I can understand the value of clean air, which is more abundant here. Plants play a big part in that, like trees helping against global warming by balancing heat in the atmosphere. Some areas suffer from others’ use of nonrenewable resources that produce harmful contents into the air. The same goes for water, which is an expensive commodity in my home country- simply water supply as well as clean water. Therefore, I can value the importance of biodiversity and its effects on ecosystem services.