The single greatest threat to biodiversity is habitat loss, and the surest way to address this challenge is to transform vulnerable lands into protected areas. Assigning lands for nature preservation, however, is proceeding at a slow pace, certainly slower than the rate of habitat destruction. This is My Earth (TiME), a new global initiative, offers a new strategy to engage the public worldwide and transforms these dynamics. Using a crowd sourcing Internet platform, TiME seeks to reach out to the world community, enabling every person on the planet to help reduce habitat destruction by purchasing land in biodiversity hot spots while becoming a member in a democratic, low cost, public participation organization. Based on the success of the pilot venture thus far, TiME is set to become a game changer in the world conservation arena. TiME has already begun providing an interim platform for generating funds to purchase sensitive lands for conservation. Through the organization’s Web interface, any individual can become a member by paying an annual membership fee as low as one dollar and earning the right to vote on the website’s page and thus affect the organization’s land purchase priorities. The organization is managed by a Board of Directors of environmental leaders and scientists from around the world, and advised by a global scientific committee comprised of some of the world’s leading conservation biologists. The later prioritizes alternative, purchasable hotspot lands for members to vote on. Once selected, the purchased lands will belong solely to the local organizations who partner with TiME.
