Wildlife populations shrink as forests are cut to grow food

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harming ecosystems hikes the risk to humans of infectious diseases like Covid-19

"Deforestation and in the larger sense, habitat loss - which is driven by how we produce and consume food - is the main cause of this dramatic decline

large-scale commercial agriculture mainly in the tropics and sub-tropics, including the production of palm oil, soy and beef.

the rapid pace of deforestation is also a major factor in the spread of zoonotic diseases - which are passed from animals to humans - such as the coronavirus causing Covid-19

Forests really act as buffers to keep those diseases away from humans - and the more we destroy them, the more chances there are that we are going to unleash something that can have dire impacts on humanity.

respected British naturalist and veteran broadcaster David Attenborough urged people to "work with nature rather than against it". The time for a pure focus on national interests had passed, he wrote. "The wealthier nations have taken a lot and the time has now come to give," he added.