Biodiversity is a term that refers to the varieties of life and life processes that occur on Planet Earth.  Biodiversity is generally thought of in terms of three components: (1) species diversity (the number of species in a defined area), (2) community diversity (the number of biological communities in a defined area, and (3) genetic diversity (the amount of genetic variation in populations of individual species).  Biodiversity includes all of the structural components (species as building blocks of an ecosystem) and functional components (the important processes that occur as species interact together and perform their role).  Functional components include (but are not limited to) processes such as soil building, flood control, temperature control, carbon dioxide absorption, and providing oxygen.  

Humans use biodiversity in a number of different ways.  We obtain products that we find useful, such as wood for building structures, food, clothing, medicines, and so on.  We also use the ecosystem processes to our advantage, like when we use biological organisms to break down our wastes, or use wetlands to capture excess runoff.  Humans also find nature to be aesthically pleasing, and some even use it for spiritual reasons - to get closer to God.  

When humans consume too much biodiversity, or use it in harmful ways, biodiversity becomes diminished or degraded, and sometimes even destroyed or replaced.  For example, excessive hunting and fishing have led to the loss of species, either locally or globally.  The global loss of a species is called extinction, and occurs when there are no individuals left of a particular species.  Other harmful practices that degrade or destroy biodiversity include deforestation, plastics pollution, introduction of invasive species, desertification, and transmission of wildlife diseases.  

A good example of this from Kenya is the loss of native forests for commercial farming of sugarcane, millet, and maize, or grazing by cattle and goats on the savanna.  When the native forests were removed and replaced with agricultural fields, there was a loss of many species that would only survive in the forest.  Animals and plants were forced into smaller and smaller islands of habitat, known as habitat fragmentation.  

Of course in Kenya, the loss of habitats caused conflicts between humans and animals that led to the loss of even more species.  Elephants were killed for eating farmers' crops as they migrated in search of food and water.  Leopards were killed for eating cows and sheep.  Snakes were killed because they began to find food and shelter in human settlements.  And all of this happened because of ever expanding human populations reducing the amount of habitat available for these animals to find what they need.  

Some people began to conserve or preserve biodiversity by setting aside tracts of land for the plants and animals.  This has been vital to retaining biodiversity.  Today in Kenya, there are over 230 conservancies that make up about 16% of the land area.  For some species, this has been a life saver.  But for others, such as the elephants and wildebeests there is not enough room, nor is there sufficient corridors for their long migrations, and so they still wander out into areas outside the conservancy and get into trouble with humans.  Nevertheless, the positive role of these conservancies in protecting biodiversity cannot be overstated.  Even the Upendo Conservation Area, which is less than 2 acres in size, can boast about the 15 species of frogs that breed inside its small borders.  

Today there is a major emphasis in Kenya on reforesting those areas that were destroyed for growing agricultural products.  Conservancies such as the Upendo Conservation Area are starting native tree nurseries, where trees are started from seeds or shoots, and are grown until ready for transplantation.  In just two years time, the Upendo Conservation Area has planted about 25-30 thousand trees in the conservation area and community.  Kenya currently has a goal of planting 15 billion trees by 2032.

Small conservancies often do not have the expertise to manage conservation land or a tree nursery.  The managers may not understand what types of changes can be made to support plant growth, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and small mammals.  They don't have the resources to set up educational programs for their community, or to build a nature center, or to post signage that teaches people about the species in their conservancy.  This is where experts from the US and around the world can come in and help them to define their goals and objectives, determine what threats need to be addressed, what opportunities exist, and development of plans for managing the habitat.