--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The one process now going on that will…" description: "\"The one process now going on that will take millions of years to correct is the loss of genetic and species diversity by the destruction of natural hab..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/e-o-wilson-1348_conservation_the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-t_2702281.jpg" --- # The one process now going on that will take millions of… ![“The one process now going on that will take millions of years to correct is the loss of genetic and species diversity by the destruction of natural habitats. This is the folly our descendants are least likely to forgive us.” quote by E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/e-o-wilson-1348_conservation_the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-t_2702281.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/e-o-wilson-1348_conservation_the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-t_2702281.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/e-o-wilson-1348_conservation_the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-t_2702281.jpg) > “The one process now going on that will take millions of years to correct is the loss of genetic and species diversity by the destruction of natural habitats. This is the folly our descendants are least likely to forgive us.” [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. Human activity destroys habitats, eroding genetic diversity, a loss future generations will regret. **In simple terms:** Habitat loss harms species diversity, a future regret. Key Takeaway Protect habitats now. Themes environment conservation biodiversity Mood concerned urgent Type activist educational When to use this quote - policy making - community activism - education programs Key Concepts Ecology intergenerational ethics Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance development and biodiversity? - What actions can individuals take? A Different Perspective Economic pressures often outweigh conservation priorities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conservation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservation/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Diversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diversity/) [Extinction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extinction/) [Folly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folly/) [Forgiving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgiving/) [Habitat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habitat/) [Loss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loss/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) ## Related quotes > [The worst thing that will probably happen-in fact is already well underway-is not energy depletion, economic collapse, conventional war, or the expansion of totalitarian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-worst-thing-that-will-probably-happen-in-fact-is-already-well/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [No civilization has survived the ongoing destruction of its natural support systems. Nor will ours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-r-brown/no-civilization-has-survived-the-ongoing-destruction-of-its-natural/) [Lester R. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-r-brown/) > [“All I can think about is that boy’s skull, bashed in, the way his head was caved in and how it wasn’t like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvine-welsh/all-i-can-think-about-is-that-boy-s-skull-bashed-in-the-way-his-head/) [Irvine Welsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvine-welsh/) > [This other war, the war upon destruction of natural assets is one that will never be finished. Our weakness in this vast war is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-bromfield/this-other-war-the-war-upon-destruction-of-natural-assets-is-one-that/) [Louis Bromfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-bromfield/) > [Parents fear the destruction of natural affection in their children. What is this natural principle so liable to decay? Habit is a second nature,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/parents-fear-the-destruction-of-natural-affection-in-their-children/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [The destruction of the natural beauty, the ecosystems, and the majesty of mountains affect us in ways we're not even aware of. Every time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-reuben/the-destruction-of-the-natural-beauty-the-ecosystems-and-the-majesty/) [Gloria Reuben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-reuben/) > [Ants are the dominant insects of the world, and they've had a great impact on habitats almost all over the land surface of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/ants-are-the-dominant-insects-of-the-world-and-they-ve-had-a-great/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [If I could live for millions and millions of years, and if the air was my food and drink, and if I lived in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-guru-granth-sahib/if-i-could-live-for-millions-and-millions-of-years-and-if-the-air-was/) [Sri Guru Granth Sahib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-guru-granth-sahib/) > [Humans will eventually become extinct. People treat that as a radical thing to say. But the fossil record shows us that everything eventually becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/humans-will-eventually-become-extinct-people-treat-that-as-a-radical/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [For millions of years you have slept. This morning, will you not wake?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/for-millions-of-years-you-have-slept-this-morning-will-you-not-wake/) [Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/) > [Women's intuition is the result of millions of years of not thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-hughes/women-s-intuition-is-the-result-of-millions-of-years-of-not-thinking/) [Rupert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-hughes/) > [“it is millions of years away, but even if we survive the collapse of our sun, we will not survive forever. There was time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-is-millions-of-years-away-but-even-if-we-survive-the-collapse-of/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [But what really excited me was the idea that humans had a tremendous pre-history that went back millions of years. I wanted to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-johanson/but-what-really-excited-me-was-the-idea-that-humans-had-a-tremendous/) [Donald Johanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-johanson/) > [I believe that the brain has evolved over millions of years to be responsive to different kinds of content in the world. Language content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-gardner/i-believe-that-the-brain-has-evolved-over-millions-of-years-to-be/) [Howard Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-gardner/) > [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/) [Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/) ## More by E. 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. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Most people are surprised when they hear my somber figures: we know of 2 million species of plants, animals and microorganisms, and we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/most-people-are-surprised-when-they-hear-my-somber-figures-we-know-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Because the living environment is what really sustains us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/because-the-living-environment-is-what-really-sustains-us/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The variety of genes on the planet in viruses exceeds, or is likely to exceed, that in all of the rest of life combined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-variety-of-genes-on-the-planet-in-viruses-exceeds-or-is-likely-to/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) [Explore all 253 E. O. Wilson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) ## More Conservation quotes > [“In the United States law, federally designated wilderness is famously defined as 'an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-marris/in-the-united-states-law-federally-designated-wilderness-is-famously/) [Emma Marris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-marris/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Conservation and rural-life policies are really two sides of the same policy; and down at the bottom this policy rests upon the fundamental law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/conservation-and-rural-life-policies-are-really-two-sides-of-the-same/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Soft fantasy worlds have a much looser cause-and-effect relationship. Alchemists can turn lead into gold and nobody wonders about how it will impact the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/soft-fantasy-worlds-have-a-much-looser-cause-and-effect-relationship/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I am optimistic globally. So many scientists are working frantically on the reparation of our planet. Unfortunately there are countries who are still destroying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-irwin/i-am-optimistic-globally-so-many-scientists-are-working-frantically/) [Steve Irwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-irwin/) > [We must commit ourselves to an 'all of the above' energy approach, with a major focus on increasing domestic production and expanding alternatives fuels,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-roskam/we-must-commit-ourselves-to-an-all-of-the-above-energy-approach-with/) [Peter Roskam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-roskam/) > [Listing the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act could harm bear conservation efforts by eliminating revenues from the carefully-regulated sport hunting of polar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-ridenour/listing-the-polar-bear-under-the-endangered-species-act-could-harm/) Amy Ridenour > [Conservation is humanity caring for the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-newhall/conservation-is-humanity-caring-for-the-future/) Nancy Newhall > [In our attempt to make conservation easy, we have made it trivial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldo-leopold/in-our-attempt-to-make-conservation-easy-we-have-made-it-trivial/) [Aldo Leopold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldo-leopold/) > [When you defile the pleasant streams, And the wild bird's abiding place, You massacre a million dreams, And cast your spittle in God's face](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-drinkwater/when-you-defile-the-pleasant-streams-and-the-wild-bird-s-abiding/) [John Drinkwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-drinkwater/) > [It's clear that it is in the best interest of business to be part of the conservation, along with governments and civil society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/it-s-clear-that-it-is-in-the-best-interest-of-business-to-be-part-of/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [To Jane Jacob’s three traditional urban values of civic space, human scale and diversity, the current environmental imperative adds two more: conservation and regionalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-calthorpe/to-jane-jacob-s-three-traditional-urban-values-of-civic-space-human/) Peter Calthorpe > [Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed; if we permit the last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/something-will-have-gone-out-of-us-as-a-people-if-we-ever-let-the/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [There is no domestic issue more important to America in the long run than the conservation and proper use of our natural resources, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaylord-nelson/there-is-no-domestic-issue-more-important-to-america-in-the-long-run/) [Gaylord Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaylord-nelson/) > [The conservation of natural resources is the fundamental problem. Unless we solve that problem it will avail us little to solve all others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/the-conservation-of-natural-resources-is-the-fundamental-problem/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) [Browse all 579 Conservation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The one process now going on that will take millions of years to correct is the loss of genetic and species diversity by the destruction of natural habitats. This is the folly our descendants are least likely to forgive us.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "E. O. Wilson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-take-millions-of-years-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conservation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-take-millions-of-years-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/e-o-wilson-1348_conservation_the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-t_2702281.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/e-o-wilson-1348_conservation_the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-t_2702281.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/e-o-wilson-1348_conservation_the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-t_2702281.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The one process now going on that will take millions of years to correct is the loss of genetic and species…” — E. O. Wilson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "E. O. Wilson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The one process now going on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-take-millions-of-years-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/the-one-process-now-going-on-that-will-take-millions-of-years-to/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```