Johnson Ayantunji 
A Professor of Atmospheric Physics at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Emmanuel Ogolo, has advocated for the adoption of climate-smart disaster risk reduction initiatives to promote sustainable development and protect the environment from the impacts of climate change, including wildfires, floods, and droughts.
Ogolo made the call while delivering the institution’s 179th inaugural lecture recently.
The don identified rapid urbanization, resource exploitation, and industrial growth as key drivers of pollution, deforestation, and habitat destruction, which threaten the long-term stability and equity of the environment.
To tackle these threats, he urged Nigeria to embrace sustainable practices in agriculture, energy, and infrastructure, all supported by government policies and green technologies.
According to him, this approach would help reduce environmental degradation, foster a resilient economy, and secure a peaceful, sustainable future.
Ogolo lamented that human activities and climate change have significantly degraded Nigeria’s biodiversity, leading to the loss of ecosystem services and increasing the occurrence of extreme climate events.
These, he said, have worsened food insecurity, health crises, and economic instability.
“The situation is dire,” he warned, “and urgent action is needed to prevent ecosystem degradation, species extinction, and the loss of ecological functionality.”
He emphasized that the increasing frequency of disasters, driven by climate change, urbanization, and land-use changes, necessitates cross-sectoral engagement and the integration of climate risks into national development planning.
Ogolo outlined key solutions, including climate action planning, resilience building, public awareness campaigns, and international cooperation.
Describing biodiversity as the variety of life forms including animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms within a specific region, he noted its crucial role in maintaining ecological balance and supporting vital human needs such as food, water, medicine, and shelter.
He observed that climate change accelerates biodiversity loss by altering habitats and species interactions, thereby increasing extinction risks.
Combating this, he said, requires reducing habitat destruction, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions, while promoting sustainable resource management.
“Since the 1970s, increased greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion and deforestation have driven climate change, leading to more frequent natural disasters, rising sea levels, reduced crop productivity, and biodiversity loss,” he explained.
He added that ecosystems play a pivotal role in climate change mitigation and adaptation by reducing carbon emissions and buffering against extreme events like wildfires, floods, and droughts.
Ogolo stressed the importance of understanding ecological responses to climate change in order to develop more effective adaptation strategies for human communities.
He recommended several measures to address biodiversity loss under future climate scenarios, including increased investment in research, enhanced community engagement, combating complacency and ignorance, promoting green infrastructure, fostering international collaboration, combining large-scale restoration with localized conservation efforts, and embedding biodiversity conservation in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Speaking in her capacity as chairperson of the occasion, the Vice Chancellor of FUTA, Professor Adenike Oladiji, described the lecture as timely and relevant, given the growing negative impact of climate change and the urgent need to safeguard the planet for future generations.
“Biodiversity covers the Earth in a vast, interconnected web of life—spanning dense rainforests, deep oceans, arid deserts, and icy polar regions,” she said. “Its distribution and variety are shaped by climate, geography, and human influence. Therefore, concerted efforts must be made to maintain this balance and prevent further deterioration.”
Oladiji praised Ogolo as an erudite and consistently productive scholar who has made significant contributions to his field.
