If we think for a minute about every animal on the surface of the planet with a skeletal system (vertebrates), from frogs and finches to elephants, then humans make up about 30 per cent of the total mass.

If we consider all the animals that humans manage to either enjoy, eat, or otherwise use, that makes up a further 67 per cent.

The remaining three per cent represents all of the other animals with vertebrae on Earth.

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Think about that. The combination of habitat destruction, exploitation and sport over the past few thousand years, and in particular the past 200, has depleted once abundant wild populations of most animals to sparse pockets of wildlife.

At the same time, we have expanded from the approximately 1.1 billion humans in 1820 to the 7.79 billion in 2020.

We added another 81 million people this year.

And while it can be regarded as an extraordinary achievement during that same period to lift the bulk of humanity out of 'poverty', it has come at a heavy cost.

We are now finding out that every species we remove from the planet also takes its job with it.

The resulting simplified ecosystems are prone to imbalance, requiring greater input from people to maintain function.

Aside from the very real consequences of breaking food webs, if you consider it right to live an ethical life, then we must all be constantly asking what an ethical life looks like.

Is it okay to live lives that create a poorer world for future generations? What will the equivalent of David Attenborough be filming in 2220?

So what can we do? It's simple. Just think about the things you consume.

Find out about the impact of your shopping and make a conscious choice to use less, leaving more left over for the planet.