"Medicine Man"

The film "Medicine Man" depicts the devastating effects of habitat loss. A professor and

his research assistant set out to find a cancer-curing plant in the Amazon Basin, only to have it

killed by land clearing. A band of natives' quiet, healthy lifestyle, as well as a large amount of

flora and fauna, are seriously disrupted by the land clearing. It depicts the deforestation

damage we caused on a slightly exaggerated, but no less successful scale. The film's main point

is to demonstrate habitat loss and its consequences for the world. It succeeds in demonstrating

the rapidity at which logging and land clearing occur.

The film also makes a subtle point about biodiversity. Biodiversity supports human and

community needs such as food and nutrition protection, energy, drug production, and

freshwater, all of which contribute to good health. It also promotes economic opportunities

and recreational activities that are beneficial to one's overall well-being. Countless different

species can be found in a very small region of a rainforest like the Amazon. Some of these

species can only be found in that area. As a consequence, clearing the forest without first

researching the flora and fauna could result in the extinction of a species. In the film, for

example, the plant and ant species that hold the key to cancer cure had never been found

anywhere else in the world. As a result, the loss of that portion of the rainforest may have

resulted in the extinction of both species. More biologically diverse communities tend to be

more sustainable (in terms of biomass production) and more stable in the face of perturbations

than less diverse communities. Animals that live in a given environment can often change their

survival conditions as a result of climate-related factors. Aesthetic, social, leisure, educational,

and inspiring qualities are also part of biodiversity's cultural values. People's relationships with

biodiversity, including conservation policies and sustainable use and management practices, are

influenced by cultural value systems. a high diversity of plant and animal life in the world or in a

specific ecosystem, which is generally regarded as valuable and desirable. Biodiversity improves

ecosystem efficiency by allowing each species, no matter how small, to play a vital role. A

higher number of plant species, for example, means a wider range of crops.

The film's main point is to demonstrate habitat loss and its consequences for the world.

It succeeds in demonstrating the rapidity at which logging and land clearing occur. These land–

clearings are normally commissioned by wealthy companies, who then use the land for farming.

They do not, however, consider the native plants, animals, and people that have a greater claim

to the land than they do. The film also emphasizes the distinction between modern city life and

the native people's way of life. The city dwellers live in greater luxury than the natives, but their

way of life is unsustainable. The “city people” suck their environment dry in order to obtain

their creature comforts, while the indigenous people have no effect on their environment,

taking only what they need. The climate can withstand the effects of indigenous people, but not

those of city dwellers. As a consequence, our climate is highly contaminated, while the

indigenous people's environment is not.

Biodiversity will be of crucial importance in our fight against disease in the future: "As

infectious agents evolve and new diseases are transmitted from domestic animals, conventional

medicines become less effective, resistance to antibiotics increases and new products are

required. In this context the potential value of biodiversity from rainforests for medical

research, as several researchers state, becomes critical for the future of humankind”.
Biodiversity supports human and community needs such as food and nutrition protection,

energy, drug production, and freshwater, all of which contribute to good health. It also

promotes economic opportunities and recreational activities that are beneficial to one's overall

well-being.