--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Destroying rainforest for economic gain…" description: "\"Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.\" — E. O. Wilson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b08/e-o-wilson-1348_burning_destroying-rainforest-for-economic-gain_3065924.png" --- # Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a… ![“Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.” quote by E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b08/e-o-wilson-1348_burning_destroying-rainforest-for-economic-gain_3065924.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b08/e-o-wilson-1348_burning_destroying-rainforest-for-economic-gain_3065924.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b08/e-o-wilson-1348_burning_destroying-rainforest-for-economic-gain_3065924.png) > “Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.” [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Destroying rainforests for profit is as senseless as burning priceless art for a meal, highlighting the tragedy of valuing short‑term gain over irreplaceable heritage. **In simple terms:** Sacrificing nature for money is like burning a masterpiece. Key Takeaway Prioritize preservation over profit. Themes environment ethics economics Mood urgent somber Type environmental ethical When to use this quote - policy advocacy - education campaigns - corporate responsibility - personal choices Key Concepts cultural loss sustainability Questions to Reflect On - How can we make preservation financially viable? - What alternatives exist to exploit natural resources? A Different Perspective Economic pressures often outweigh moral considerations for many. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Burning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burning/) [Burning Renaissance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burning-renaissance-3984722/) [Conservation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservation/) [Destroying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destroying/) [Destroying Rainforest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destroying-rainforest-5164062/) [Economic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economic/) [Like Burning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-burning-904782/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Rainforest Economic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rainforest-economic-5164063/) [Renaissance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/renaissance/) ## Related quotes > [“Destroying forest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-o-wilson/destroying-forest-for-economic-gain-is-like-burning-a-renaissance/) [Edward O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-o-wilson/) > [Destroying a tropical rainforest for profit is like burning all the paintings of the Louvre to cook dinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/destroying-a-tropical-rainforest-for-profit-is-like-burning-all-the/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [If religion and science could be united on the common ground of biological conservation, the problem would be soon solved. If there is any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/if-religion-and-science-could-be-united-on-the-common-ground-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The students of biodiversity, the ones we most need in science today, have an enormous task ahead of molecular biology and the medical scientists.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-students-of-biodiversity-the-ones-we-most-need-in-science-today/) [E. O. 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Mary's body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garth-marenghi/he-whisked-off-her-shoes-and-panties-in-one-movement-wild-like-an/) [Garth Marenghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garth-marenghi/) > [I developed this - I don't know, like a burning love, almost, inside of me that I just wanted to get up, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-celski/i-developed-this-i-don-t-know-like-a-burning-love-almost-inside-of-me/) [J. R. Celski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-celski/) > [Hating people is like burning down your own house to get rid of a rat. Invest your energy into something more worthwhile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/hating-people-is-like-burning-down-your-own-house-to-get-rid-of-a-rat/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Hating someone is like burning down your own house to get rid of a rat. 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O. Wilson > [Without a trace of irony I can say I have been blessed with brilliant enemies. I owe them a great debt, because they redoubled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/without-a-trace-of-irony-i-can-say-i-have-been-blessed-with-brilliant/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [It's always been a dream of mine, of exploring the living world, of classifying all the species and finding out what makes up the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/it-s-always-been-a-dream-of-mine-of-exploring-the-living-world-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Competing is intense among humans, and within a group, selfish individuals always win. But in contests between groups, groups of altruists always beat groups…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/competing-is-intense-among-humans-and-within-a-group-selfish/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [When all else fails, men turn to reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/when-all-else-fails-men-turn-to-reason/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The commitment must be much deeper - to let no species knowingly die; to take all reasonable action to protect every species and race…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-commitment-must-be-much-deeper-to-let-no-species-knowingly-die-to/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Science is not marginal. Like art, it is a universal possession of humanity, and scientific knowledge has become a vital part of our species'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/science-is-not-marginal-like-art-it-is-a-universal-possession-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The living environment is the biosphere, the thin layer around the world of living organisms. We're part of that. Our existence is dependent on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-living-environment-is-the-biosphere-the-thin-layer-around-the/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The biological evolutionary perception of life and of human qualities is radically different from that of traditional religion, whether it's Southern Baptist or Islam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-biological-evolutionary-perception-of-life-and-of-human-qualities/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [We should preserve every scrap of biodiversity as priceless while we learn to use it and come to understand what it means to humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/we-should-preserve-every-scrap-of-biodiversity-as-priceless-while-we/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [In many environments, take away the ants and there would be partial collapses in many of the land ecosystems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/in-many-environments-take-away-the-ants-and-there-would-be-partial/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [If those committed to the quest fail, they will be forgiven. When lost, they will find another way. The moral imperative of humanism is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/if-those-committed-to-the-quest-fail-they-will-be-forgiven-when-lost/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The extinctions ongoing worldwide promise to be at least as great as the mass extinction that occurred at the end of the age of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-extinctions-ongoing-worldwide-promise-to-be-at-least-as-great-as/) [E. O. 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There was a ridge of ploughed land, with a plough upon it where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/he-lowered-the-window-and-looked-out-at-the-rising-sun-there-was-a/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [Catholicity seized on man... and the mystics, transcending all, taught him to ascend on high with the wings of contemplation the Ladder of Jacob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-donoso-cortes/catholicity-seized-on-man-and-the-mystics-transcending-all-taught-him/) [Juan Donoso Cortes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-donoso-cortes/) > [Some fighters know when to stop on their own and go on to something else, and then some fighters have nothing to go back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-hagler/some-fighters-know-when-to-stop-on-their-own-and-go-on-to-something/) [Marvin Hagler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-hagler/) > [Death is staring too long into the burning sun and the relief of entering a cool, dark room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/death-is-staring-too-long-into-the-burning-sun-and-the-relief-of/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [All philanthropy ... is only a savory fumigation burning at the mouth of a sewer. 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