One of the major problems with invasive species, habitat loss, and other environmental problems is that it leads to a creeping norm. Consider the Mariana Islands, where for decades the brown tree snake has reigned supreme, while many of the once plentiful endemic island birds have vanished. To the children growing up on Guam, the brown tree snake must seem to be the native; in the wonderful event that the Guam rail and other island birds were ever successfully reintroduced, it is they who would seem the aliens. Likewise for habitat loss - if every generation grows up with a more degraded environment than their parents knew, pretty soon the standard of what is considered a normal, pristine environment is lowered as well.
It's exciting to see that children in the Northern Marianas are being given the chance to explore and study the biodiversity that (still) surrounds them. Only by teaching the next generation to understand and value the natural world around them can we hope to ensure that they will step up to become its next generation of protectors.
Students examine the skeleton of a whale (from Marianas Variety)
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