Business and Biodiversity Initiative

One ecosystem we've been looking at lately, as part of the preparation for our internartional touring exhibition, is the Aral Sea. 

The shrinking of the Aral Sea has been caused by the diversion of water for agricultural purposes, which dates back to the 1960s. 

The Aral Sea provides a shocking example of the potential negative impacts the economic activites can have on an ecosystem.  Visible from space, satellite images allow the changes over time to be visible for all.

Here are pictures of 1980 and 2003, and the Scientific American has a comparison of 2006 and 2009.  Apparently the sea, which was once the fourth larges inland sea in the world will be completely dry by 2020.

Below is a video of the sea shrinking over time.