5. The World Wide Fund for Nature
is
an
international
nongovernmental organization working
on
issues
regarding
the conservation, research and
restoration of the environment,
formerly named the World Wildlife
Fund, which remains its official
name in Canada and the United
States. It is the world's largest
independent
conservation
organization with over 5 million
supporters worldwide, working in
more than 100 countries, supporting
around 1,300 conservation and
environmental
projects.
6.
7. The group says its
mission is:
"to halt and reverse the
destruction of our
environment".
Currently, much of its
work focuses on the
conservation of
three biomes that
contain most of the
world's biodiversity:
forests,
freshwater ecosystems,
oceans and coasts.
Among other issues, it is
also concerned with
endangered species,
pollution and
climate change.
8. WWF has set up offices and operations around
the world. It originally worked by fundraising
and providing grants to existing nongovernmental organizations, based on the
best-available scientific knowledge and with
an
initial
focus
on
the
protection
of endangered species. As more resources
became available, its operations expanded
into other areas such as the preservation
of biological diversity, sustainable use
of
natural
resources,
the
reduction
of pollution, and climate change. The
organization also began to run its own
conservation projects and campaigns, and by
the 1980s started to take a more strategic
approach to its conservation activities.
9.
10. In the 1990s, WWF revised its mission to: “Stop the degradation of the
planet’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in
harmony with nature, by:
• conserving the world's biological diversity
• ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable
• promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.”
11. We shan't save all we should like to, but we shall save a
great deal more than if we had never tried. — Sir Peter
Scott
12. WWF scientists and many others identified 238 ecoregions that
represent the world's most biologically outstanding terrestrial,
freshwater and marine habitats, based on a worldwide biodiversity
analysis which the organization says was the first of its kind.
13. In the early 2000s (decade), its work was focused on a subset of
these ecoregions, in the areas of forest, freshwater and
marine habitat conservation, endangered species conservation,
climate change, and the elimination of the most toxic chemicals.
15. WWF's current strategy for achieving its mission specifically focuses on
restoring populations of 36 species (species or species groups that are
important for their ecosystem or to people,
including elephants, tunas, whales, dolphins and porpoises),
and ecological footprint in 6 areas (carbon emissions, cropland, grazing
land, fishing, forestry and water).
16.
17.
18. WWF works with a large number of
different groups to achieve its goals,
including other NGOs, governments,
business, investment banks, scientists,
fishers, farmers and local communities. It
also undertakes public campaigns to
influence decision makers, and seeks to
educate people on how to live in a more
environmentally
friendly
manner.
19.
20.
21. Match the vocabulary words on the left with the definitions on the right:
1. Extinct
a) A specific habitation place where an animal lives
2. Pollution
b) A person who trespasses, usually to hunt or fish
illegally
3.Endangered
species
c)When something is completely gone and doesn’t return
4.Greenhouse
effect
d) A specific species that is at risk for extinction due to
natural and human forces
5. Poacher
e)The process or act of contaminating
6. Conservation
f) an increase in the amount of carbon dioxide and
other gases in the atmosphere
7. Habitat
g)The area that surrounds the earth that may support life
8. Biosphere
h) The act of preserving; to keep from being used up or
lost
22. CHECK YOURSELF
1.
Extinct
2.
Pollution
3.
Endangered species
4.
Greenhouse effect
5.
Poacher
6.
Conservation
7.
Habitat
8.
Biosphere
When something is completely gone
and
doesn’t return
The process or act of contaminating
A specific species that is at risk for extinction
due to natural and human forces
An increase in the amount of carbon dioxide
and other gases in the atmosphere
A person who trespasses, usually to hunt or
fish
Illegally
The act of preserving; to keep from being
used
up or lost
A specific habitation place where an animal
lives
The area that surrounds the earth that may
support life
