World Environment Day occurs on 5 June every year, is the United Nation’s principal vehicle for encouraging worldwide awareness and action for the protection of our environment.First held in 1974, it has been a flagship campaign for raising awareness on emerging environmental issues from marine pollution and global warming, to sustainable consumption and wildlife crime. WED has grown to become a global platform for public outreach, with participation from over 143 countries annually. Each year, WED has a new theme that major corporations, NGOs, communities, governments and celebrities worldwide adopt to advocate environmental causes.
World Environment Day is a day for everyone, everywhere. Since it began in 1972, global citizens have organized many thousands of events, from neighbourhood clean-ups, to action against wildlife crime, to replanting forests."Connecting People to Nature", the theme for World Environment Day 2017, implores us to get outdoors and into nature, to appreciate its beauty and its importance, and to take forward the call to protect the Earth that we share. This year’s theme invites you to think about how we are part of nature and how intimately we depend on it. It challenges us to find fun and exciting ways to experience and cherish this vital relationship.
Histrory Of World Environment Day
World Environment Day was designated by the UN General Assembly in 1972 on the first day of United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, resulting from discussions on the integration of human interactions and the environment. Two years later, in 1974 the first WED was held with the theme “Only One Earth”. Even though WED celebrations have been held annually since 1974, in 1987 the idea for rotating the center of these activities through selecting different host countries began.
The value of nature
In recent decades, scientific advances as well as growing environmental problems such as global warming are helping us to understand the countless ways in which natural systems support our own prosperity and well-being. For example, the world’s oceans, forests and soils act as vast stores for greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane; farmers and fisher-folk harness nature on land and under water to provide us with food; scientists develop medicines using genetic material drawn from the millions of species that make up Earth’s astounding biological diversity.Billions of rural people around the world spend every working day ‘connected to nature’ and appreciate full well their dependence on natural water supplies and how nature provides their livelihoods in the form of fertile soil. They are among the first to suffer when ecosystems are threatened, whether by pollution, climate change or over-exploitation.Nature’s gifts are often hard to value in monetary terms. Like clean air, they are often taken for granted, at least until they become scarce. However, economists are developing ways to measure the multi-trillion-dollar worth of many so-called ‘ecosystem services’, from insects pollinating fruit trees in the orchards of California to the leisure, health and spiritual benefits of a hike up a Himalayan valley.
World Environment Day Activities
There are many different activities that you can do as a part of World Environment Day. Here are a few suggestions .
Weed and fertilize public trees and gardens.
Eat organic food. Make a meal that is made up of locally grown products.
Collect trash in your community.
Talk to your parents. Come out with a plan that could help you to save energy and reduce your monthly electricity bills.
Plant a new plot in a community garden with different rows holding plants from different countries.
Adopt a “sister” city or village and work with them to improve environmental health in both locations.
Hold an educational forum about global environmental issues and invite in speakers.
Write letters to the editor about World Environment Day and list areas of concern, and possible solutions, which can be addressed locally.
Clean up litter on roads.
Dispose hazardous waste like batteries, paint cans, old electronics in recycling centres as they could prove disastrous when disposed openly.
Leave your car and drive bicycle.
Learn how composting works. The organic waste that ends up in landfills can be a great source of nutrient for your plants that can help them grow and shine.
Get out and into your local environment. Sponsor a walk or hike – studies have shown that the more people are involved in green spaces, the more green spaces and the environment become important to them.
Start a “100 things” challenge group. This is the famous challenge to help you start living a minimalistic life style that allows you to fulfill the first of the three R’s in the waste hierarchy (reduce).
Discuss with your friends and brainstorm ideas as to how can you reduce your carbon footprint and be environment friendly.
Wear green clothes. Show to the world that you care for Mother Earth.
Research more about the environment issues (air, water and land pollution) and come out with your own ideas to control them.
Buy items made up from recycled products. Look out for recycle symbol on the packaged goods.
Create beautiful handicrafts from recycled material and gift it to your friends or relatives.
Make a commitment to yourself, like a New Years’ resolution, to do one thing differently to increase how you benefit the environment.
How do you get a World Environment Day started in your Community?
If there isn’t already an organized World Environment Day in your community it is easy to start one. The first place you should go is to your local community garden or farmer’s market this is where you most likely will find supporters. From there you want to decide on what type of event that you want to use as your celebration of the day. Once you have the event in place, make sure you publicize it to your local media stations (including social media). Make sure that you –
Have some educational material on hand to give out about the state of the world’s environment
How do you get a World Environment Day started in your Community?
If there isn’t already an organized World Environment Day in your community it is easy to start one. The first place you should go is to your local community garden or farmer’s market this is where you most likely will find supporters. From there you want to decide on what type of event that you want to use as your celebration of the day. Once you have the event in place, make sure you publicize it to your local media stations (including social media). Make sure that you –
Have some educational material on hand to give out about the state of the world’s environment
Be able to address problems and possible solutions for local environmental concerns
Use electronic and digital methods for promotion as much as possible – don’t use paper flyers – that defeats the purpose of the day.
The best way to get connected with global groups and celebrations is to become a part of the United Nations Environmental Programs (UNEP). If you go to their website you find information about what they do and how to contact them to start creating a support group in your area.
Why is World Environment Day Important?
Without public awareness of the importance of the environment on a global scale, politics won’t pay attention to changing legislation to govern practices that may be hurting the environment. When you create a group for World Environment Day, you aren’t just making something for June 5th. This is a year round commitment to advocacy and action in your local area, and on a global scale to promote and encourage environmental responsibility and the conservation of natural resources. While the debate may still go on about alternate fuels and recycling, the fact remains that what we do have needs to be conserved and preserved to even allow us something to argue over.
Why is World Environment Day Important?
Without public awareness of the importance of the environment on a global scale, politics won’t pay attention to changing legislation to govern practices that may be hurting the environment. When you create a group for World Environment Day, you aren’t just making something for June 5th. This is a year round commitment to advocacy and action in your local area, and on a global scale to promote and encourage environmental responsibility and the conservation of natural resources. While the debate may still go on about alternate fuels and recycling, the fact remains that what we do have needs to be conserved and preserved to even allow us something to argue over.
