ZAGREB, May 22, 2020 - World Biodiversity Day, a United Nations–designated day for the promotion of biodiversity issues on 22 May, which is also observed in Croatia as the national day of nature protection, is being held this year under the slogan "Our solutions are in nature".
On this occasion, Croatia's Environment Protection and Energy Ministry calls for ambitious and quick action at all levels of the society, including both institutions and individuals, to make sure that the development and our existence are in harmony with nature.
The developments surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic are one more reason for the world to reconsider its treatment of nature.
About 70% of new diseases in the human population are zoonoses, that are infectious diseases caused by a pathogen (an infectious agent, such as a bacterium, virus, parasite, or prion) that has jumped from an animal to a human, the ministry notes.
The current health crisis shows that despite technological progress, the population depends fully on healthy ecosystems, it added.
Croatia is one of the European countries characterized by very rich biodiversity because of its specific geographic position which encompasses three bio-geographic regions with distinct ecological, climatic, and geomorphic features.