Time to rethink nature conservation? Ecologists call for ecosystem approach to halt nature decline - Natural History Museum

Senior ecologists call for an ecosystem approach as the only way to halt the vanishing of UK wildlife and, critically, protect the ecosystem services that nature provides.

A new report published today (6 November 2025) by the British Ecological Society and National Trust, with involvement from Natural History Museum, London scientists, makes clear that human wellbeing over the coming years and decades will not depend on the prosperity of species, but on ecosystems continuing to function in a resilient way.

The Aligning Environmental Agendas for Nature Recovery report writes that despite some conservation successes for individual species, fragmented strategies aren’t big picture enough: one in six species is threatened with extinction in the UK. This threatens the critical ecosystem services upon which society is built upon.

Prof Andy Purvis, Research Leader at the Natural History Museum, London, says, “The ecosystem approach is important because it’s ecosystems – not species – that we depend on. That’s where our supply chains start.

Getting ecosystems back to a state where they can renew themselves and regenerate over time, is a logical, forward-facing solution for a future where people and the planet can thrive.”

An ecosystem approach to nature recovery implicitly includes people and complements species and habitat conservation by considering the whole ecological ‘system’, including human activities.

Professor Nathalie Pettorelli OBE at the Institute of Zoology, ZSL, and lead author of the report said, “The food we eat, that’s ecosystems. Climate regulation, that’s ecosystems. Protection from extreme weather events, that’s ecosystems. To put it simply, if ecosystems go, we go.”