Deforestation and Biodiversity Loss: Drivers, Tipping Points and Policy Solutions – A Brief Review of Recent Advances
Abstract:
This paper reviews the complex drivers, dynamics, and systemic consequences of tropical deforestation and its nexus with biodiversity loss and climate change. Utilizing a literature review methodology, it synthesizes findings from scholarly sources to explore how agricultural expansion, global consumption patterns, and climate feedback loops drive a cascading ecological and economic crisis. The paper highlights how deforestation can push eco systems toward tipping points, such as the Amazon dieback, where degradation triggers abrupt and potentially irreversible shifts in ecological and climatic stability, amplifying biodiversity loss. It examines delayed impacts of habitat fragmentation, known as extinction debt, and analyzes growing financial and governance risks linked to de forestation. Key policy responses, including the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and the REDD+ framework, are assessed. The study concludes that addressing this systemic crisis requires integrated governance, innovative f inance, sustainable land-use strategies such as agroforestry, and a reassessment of global consumption patterns to avoid crossing critical ecological thresholds.
