"(People) don't necessarily link themselves as directly to a crisis like biodiversity loss, as much as they will to say a refugee crisis. But I think catastrophic events, such as what is happening in the Gulf with the oil spill, do highlight for people that there is an enormous ramification for human well-being to a loss of biodiversity like a fishery," said Norton.
Norton's appointment marks the UN's 2010 International Year of Biodiversity, which aims to promote the protection of biodiversity and raise awareness of its crucial importance to life on Earth.