Ken Thompson Quotes

The protection of biodiversity and, therefore, of endangered species is an issue to which I attach a great deal of importance.

Living wild species are like a library of books still unread. Our heedless destruction of them is akin to burning the library without ever having read its books.

True conservation means protecting the entire habitat.

In my life, I have dreamt of seeing the great herds of wild animals, jungles and rainforests full of birds and butterflies, but now I wonder if they will even exist for my children to see.

The continued existence of wildlife and wilderness is important to the quality of life of humans.

The quicker we humans learn that saving open space and wildlife is critical to our welfare and quality of life, maybe we'll start thinking of doing something about it.

The Endangered Species Act is the strongest and most effective tool we have to repair the environmental harm that is causing a species to decline.

I'm for conservation, but it's mostly a con. That's the trouble. It's sentimental. Buy an elephant a drink, a lion an acre.

Many of the earth's habitats, animals, plants, insects and even micro-organisms that we know to be rare may not be known at all by future generations. We have the capability and the responsibility to act; we must do so before it is too late.

Protecting eagles from the threat of extinction is a conservation success story that we must prudently safeguard for future generations to come.

Biological diversity is messy. It walks, it crawls, it swims, it swoops, it buzzes. But extinction is silent, and it has no voice other than our own.

Species conversation is beyond a doubt an issue that truly matters to the American public.

We're losing biodiversity globally at an alarming rate, and we need a cornucopia of different plants and animals, for the planet's health and our own.

We've got to step up our conservation efforts before it's too late. We're not protecting our lands and natural resources. Take the Grand Canyon for example; I'm sure that at one time it was a beautiful piece of land, and just look at the way we've let it go.

It is absolutely imperative that we protect, preserve and pass on this genetic heritage for man and every other living thing in as good a condition as we received it.

Biodiversity can't be maintained by protecting a few species in a zoo, or by preserving greenbelts or national parks. To function properly, nature needs more room than that. It can maintain itself, however, without human expense, without zookeepers, park rangers, foresters or gene banks. All it needs is to be left alone.

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.

Biodiversity underpins life on earth. And if we don't look after this biodiversity, if we don't protect it, if we don't actually harness it in the right way, we are threatening our own livelihoods on this planet.

The value of biodiversity is that it makes our ecosystems more resilient, which is a prerequisite for stable societies; its wanton destruction is akin to setting fire to our lifeboat.

A decade down the line, I don't want to sit back and think that I didn't do anything to stop disasters like the extinction of certain species.

Mississippians for the most part appreciate U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service management of our wildlife refuges and other natural resources.

National Parks are the gold standard for conservation.

I want my children and my grandchildren to live in a world with clean air, pure drinking water, and an abundance of wildlife, so I've chosen to dedicate my life to wildlife conservation so I can make the world just a little bit better.

I realize the answer is not to create wilderness and walk away.

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a unique and biologically special place that should be preserved.