Lower public concern for biodiversity than for wilderness, natural places, charismatic megafauna and/or habitats

ABSTRACT

The UN declared 2010 the “International Year of Biodiversity” (IYB). A survey was undertaken at the end of this year in the Washington D.C. metro area (n = 180). Thirty-eight point nine percent of the participants had not heard of the term “biodiversity”. Only 36.7% could correctly define “biodiversity”. Almost no one had heard of the IYB (99.9%). Respondents understood the importance of maintaining biodiversity for food security (82%), new pharmaceuticals (84%), and agriculture (83%). Stated concern for “rainforest”, “wilderness areas”, “natural places” was higher than that for “biodiversity”. The IYB seems to have had limited impact on public awareness in Washington D.C.