Kathmandu, Sept. 10 -- In its latestLiving Planet Report 2020released on Thursday, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has revealed that there has been a two-thirds decline in the global populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish in the past 50 years.

WWF warns in its annual report that this environmental destruction is responsible for the emergence of zoonotic diseases such as Covid-19 and future vulnerability to pandemics.

Shocking as the news is, Nepal has been praised internationally as a model for nature conservation and its ability to manage people and parks relatively well despite problems of poverty, population growth and pressure on land.

"We have a lot to be optimistic about in Nepal because of our past achievemen...