GCU 114 - Biodiversity & Cultural Diversity

Biodiversity and cultural diversity are two concepts that are

talked about a lot when speaking of the world and the
characteristics of our world. Even though they are talked about
frequently, they are not always interpreted in the correct way.
Biodiversity can be defined as the variety of life in the world or a
particular habitat or environment. Cultural diversity can be
defined as the extensive variety of cultural or ethnic groups
within a society. These two concepts can relate to each other by
how people in a country or environment interpret the concepts of
biodiversity and how it affects their daily lives.
Croatia is one of the richest European countries in terms of
biodiversity thanks to its specific geographical position, on the
diving line of several biogeographic regions. Also, it has
numerous amounts of ecological characteristics, climatic and
geomorphological conditions. Croatia also has a huge variety of
species in the marine habitat. With all of these examples of
biodiversity in such a small country, it is still not fully recognized
for its large amounts of diversity. For example, the number of
known species in Croatia is only 32,000 while the actual number
is estimated to be much higher near 50,000 (Radovic, 3). All of

these examples of biodiversity have influences the culture of the

country. Croatia was founded with a strong value of family
instilled in their cultural values. With the beautiful, diverse
landscape Croatia has to offer, many families spend time
outside together appreciating the beauty that their country has to
offer (Culture of Croatia, 2). The culture of Croatia has had a
rocky road with gaining their independence, so that is a very
important value to many Croatians today. Their independence is
seen with how they care so much for their land, plants, and
animals. Croatians take pride in the high level of biodiversity that
their country has and they do a lot to preserve and protect that.
When visiting the country, it is clear that the Croatians are proud
of their country and the beauty and diversity it has to offer. The
hundreds of examples of biodiversity seen in Croatia attract
tourists, (like myself!) to come experience it for themselves. This
increase of tourists over the years has led to cultural diversity in
the country as well because people from different backgrounds
and cultures come to Croatia and spread their ideas as well.
Croatia has always been a country that is looked at as not
very relevant and many people do not even know where or what
it is. It has been underrated for many years, but this could be in

fact a good thing for Croatia. With not a large amount of extra
people in the country, the biodiversity of it is easier to protect
and preserve. It is hard enough to protect some of it, like plants
and animals, from the natural factors such as the humid climate
during summer. With Croatia being one of the most bio diverse
places in all of Europe, people will come to the country with high
hopes. The more people that come to the country, the more
culturally diverse Croatia will become with people bringing their
new ideas and meanings of the biodiversity the beautiful Croatia
contains.

Citations
Biodiversity in Croatia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2015
Culture of Croatia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2015
Loria, R. (2010). Croatian Cultural Profile. Retrieved November 17,
2015
Radovic, J. (2009). Biodiversity of Croatia Second Revised
Edition. Retrieved November 17, 2015