Nearly 25 percent of the world’s mammals — more than 1,000 species in total — are in danger of going extinct within 30 years, according to a report by the United Nations Environment Programme on the state of the global environment. In total, the report identifies more than 11,000 endangered species, including one in eight bird species and more than 5,000 kinds of plants. The report blames the introduction of invasive species, human encroachment on wilderness areas, rainforest and wetlands destruction, and the impact of industry for the precarious position of so many species. It further notes that all of the factors that contribute to extinctions are intensifying — although many of them could be mitigated or eliminated if international governments implemented the full range of treaties and conventions passed since the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio.
