And by the end of the 21st century, rainforests may go extinct altogether.

到了 21 世紀末，雨林或許將全數消失。

You may think it's just a few plants and animals that'll suffer, but modern global society relies on rainforests more than you might realize.

你或許認為受害的只是一些動植物，但現代全球社會可比你想的還依賴雨林。

The loss of this dense biodiversity could lead to sickness, poverty, even war.

高度生態多樣性的逝去可能導致疾病、貧窮，甚至戰爭。

So, what would a post-rainforest world look like?

所以，沒了雨林的世界會是如何？

Well, first it is important to understand why the rainforest is disappearing.

首先必須了解為什麼雨林會消失。

Globally, over the last 40 years, an area possibly the size of Europe has been cleared and repurposed for commercial use.

在過去 40 年，全球總計有大小約等同於歐洲的雨林區被砍伐，另做商業用途。

In some cases the land is replanted with trees that produce rubber or palm oil, in other cases it is used as grazing land for cattle, or torn down for urban development.

可能用來改種橡膠樹或棕櫚樹，或是被用來當做牛隻放牧區，或當做都市用地。

And if nothing is done, we may ultimately see rainforests gone altogether, and along with them, crucial benefits.

如果我們不做任何改變，雨林將可能在我們眼前消失殆盡，也意味著損失重要的益處。

Without rainforests, some estimate that the basis for up to a quarter of modern medicine would be lost, with thousands of medical compounds derived from plants.

沒了雨林，據估計有高達四分之一的現代藥品將無從生產，因為有上千種醫藥混合物取自於植物。

For example, the rosy periwinkle, which is naturally endemic only to Madagascar, produces two anti-tumor drugs used to fight leukemia and Hodgkin's Disease.

舉個例子，馬達加斯加原生特有種玫瑰紅蔓長春花被拿來製成兩種抗腫瘤藥物，主要用來治療白血病和霍奇金氏淋巴瘤。

Chemicals synthesized as a result of this plant contribute to an estimated $160 million dollars per year and the rainforest plant-drug market in total has been estimated at roughly $150 billion dollars.

該植物製成的化學合成物每年帶進約 1 億 6000 萬美元，而整個雨林植物製藥市場據估計價值約 1500 億美金。

Many poor communities rely on rainforest plant life for medicine, as prescription medication and derivatives are completely unaffordable for large portions of the world's population.

許多貧窮人也都仰賴雨林的植物治病，因為處方藥和衍生物對世界大多數人口來說太過高價。

The World Health Organization estimates that roughly 80% of Africa's population uses traditional, herbal medicine as part of their primary health care, while in China, up to half of all medicine consumed are herbal remedies.

世界衛生組織估計，約 80% 非洲人口使用傳統藥草作為主要保健用品，而在中國，有半數的藥都是草本藥方。

Besides a medicinal outlook, the lack of vegetation could mean a rapid rise in climate change.

除了藥用方面，植被的減少也意味著急劇氣候變遷。

Rainforests are known as "carbon sinks", which means that they consume carbon dioxide, clearing it from the atmosphere.

雨林也被稱為「碳匯」，意思是他們從大氣中吸收並消耗二氧化碳。

Studies show that roughly 40% of manmade CO2 is absorbed by forests.

研究顯示大約有 40% 的人為二氧化碳由雨林吸收。

As carbon dioxide levels rise and rainforest acreage falls, the subsequent change in climate can contribute to severe droughts, as well as rising sea levels.

隨著二氧化碳指數提升、雨林面積減少，接踵而來的氣候變遷將導致嚴重乾旱以及海平面上升。

This is a bigger problem than it may seem, as climate change plays a huge role in geopolitics.

這問題比表面上看來要嚴重許多，因為氣候變遷大大影響地緣政治。

Wars over resources are devastating, and demand for farming land continues to outstrip its supply.

爭奪資源的戰爭非常具毀滅性，而農耕地依舊供不及需。

In 2014 in northern Honduras, US-backed security forces were implicated in the murder and intimidation of local farmers involved in disputes over palm oil.

2014 年於洪都拉斯北部，美方維安警力被牽涉進當地農民為爭奪棕櫚油而做出的謀殺和恐嚇。

More than 100 people have already been killed over the disputes.

已有超過 100 人在這場爭奪中死去。

In other parts of the world, entire indigenous tribes are being killed and displaced in favor of commercial logging and razing.

在地球的另一個角落，有一整個當地部落遭到殺害和轉移，起因就是為了商業伐木和土地夷平。

But stopping this deforestation may not end up solving the larger problem.

但是阻止了森林砍伐也不見得能夠解決更大的問題。

Even when ignoring financial gain by businesses which exploit these natural resources, many people in developing countries rely on the exploitation to survive.

即便不提濫用這些自然資源牟利的業者，許多在開發中國家的人們也賴此為生。

For example, palm oil employs millions of farmers, and the industry plays an important role in reducing poverty.

舉例來說，棕櫚油產業僱用了上百萬名農夫，業者在減少貧窮的過程中扮演了重大角色。

According to one NGO on Sustainable Palm Oil, as many as 4.5 million people in Indonesia and Malaysia work in its production.

根據一個有關棕櫚油永續發展的非政府組織表示，在印尼和馬來西亞有 450 萬人參與了棕櫚油的製作。

And simply switching to another method of production could potentially be even worse for the environment.

單單只是改換成另一種產出方式也可能對環境帶來更糟的影響。

Alternative vegetable oils, like sunflower, soybean, and rapeseed produce about 4 to 10 times less oil per acre, so to meet demand, even more land would have to be destroyed.

替代植物油品，如葵花油、大豆油和油菜籽油，每公頃的產量比棕櫚油少 4 至 10 倍，所以為了因應需求，甚至會有更多的土地遭破壞。

We all know rainforests are vital, but their direct impacts in day-to-day health, global stability, and the condition of the world's atmosphere are regularly understated.

我們都知道雨林的重要性，但它對日常用藥、全球局勢穩定以及大氣狀況的直接影響卻往往被低估。

In the end, a world without rainforests is much more devastating than we might realize, and much harder to avoid than we might expect.

最終，一個沒了雨林的世界將會比我們所想的更具毀滅性，卻也比我們所想的要難以避免。

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如果你是一位企業家、創新家，或是正要開始自己的小生意，當你想揮灑創意時 DOMAIN.COM 會是你的好選擇。

No domain extension will help tell your story like a .COM or .NET domain name.

別家的網域擴充都不比 .COM 或 .NET 要擅於傳播你的點子。

DOMAIN.COM is affordable, reliable, and easy-to-use.

DOMAIN.COM 價格實惠、值得信賴，且操作簡便。

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結帳時輸入折扣碼 SEEKER 即能以 20% 的折扣獲得划算的域名及網路寄存服務。

When you think domain names, think DOMAIN.COM.

當你想到域名，銘記 DOMAIN.COM。

The Amazon rainforest is notorious for its unknown terrain.

亞馬遜雨林以其未知的領域而聞名。

Watch this video to find out why it's known to explorers as the 'Green Hell.' Thanks for watching Seeker Daily, make sure to like and subscribe!

看看這部影片，了解為何探險家會稱之為「綠色地獄」。感謝收看 Seeker Daily，記得按讚並且訂閱！