Today Celebrates World Environment Day occurs on the 5th of June every year and is the United Nation’s principal vehicle for encouraging 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, human overpopulation, 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.
History
World Environment Day [WED] was established by the UN General Assembly in 1972 on the first day of the Stockholm 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 held with the theme “Only One Earth”. Even though WED celebration have been held annually since 1974, in 1987 the idea for rotating the centre of these activities through selecting different host countries began.
World Environment Day Theme 2018: Beat Plastic Pollution
The theme for 2018 is “Beat Plastic Pollution”. The host nation is India. The theme for today the World Environment Day 2018, “Beat Plastic Pollution”. So by choosing this Theme, it is aimed that people may strive to changes in their everyday lives to reduce the heavy burden of plastic pollution. People should be free from the over-reliance on single-use or disposables, as they have severe environmental consequences. We should liberate our natural places, our wildlife – and our own health from plastics
The theme for World Environment Day 2018 – to which India will play host on 5 June – is ‘beat plastic pollution’. And the onus to beat the pollution lies not only on the government, but also on ordinary citizens like you and I.
5 Ways To Reduce Plastic Usage In Your Kitchen
So, here’s how we can begin to stop using plastic, starting from one of the most common places in the house, our kitchens:
1. Toss the plastic water bottles
We all love our fancy plastic water bottles lined up in the refrigerator; however, what we don’t understand are the harmful effects that might lead to health issues in the longer run. These plastic bottles contain harmful chemicals that interfere with the hormones in the body. Chemicals in the plastic can leach into the bottle, especially when exposed to heat or become too old to use.
2. Do not use plastic tiffin-boxes and containers
We generally store most of our leftover food in plastic containers, or even use to store masalas in them. On the other hand, we tend to pack lunch for kids in plastic tiffin boxes. Chemicals used to make plastic containers harm our body and cause certain health problems.
3. Kick the plastic straws out
One of the main reasons to drop the straw is the presence of many chemicals like polypropylene and bisphenol A, which are harmful to human health. Other than that, while sipping beverages using a straw, the movement of the mouth area may encourage the breakdown of collagen and elasticity more quickly and easily, causing fine lines and wrinkles.
4. Do not buy plastic plates or cutlery
Eating hot food using plastic plates and cutleries is says to increase the risk of kidney stones. The melamine exposures say to lead to harmful effects in the body. Higher temperatures or more acidic foods may encourage melamine to contaminate food, especially if these are low-quality plates and cutleries.
5. Do not collect plastic bags
Indians have a habit to store plastic bags to use them for other purposes. However, plastic bags, when thrown away says to disrupt the environment in a serious way. They get into the soil and slowly release toxic chemicals. They eventually break down into the soil, with the result being that animals consume them and often choke and die. So a plastic bag takes about 450 years to recycle.
This World Environment Day 2018, let’s pledge to not use anything plastic, starting today. In fact, let’s make people aware of environmental problems and make our surroundings cleaner before it gets too late.
Who Created World Environment Day?
World Environment Day is a part of the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) for creating awareness and action worldwide for the environment. UNEP is made up of elect committee members from various countries that work together to promote environmental issues through creating treaties and regulations for countries to sign that are based in environmental law, environmental health and environmental sustainability initiatives. The first World Environment Day was celebrated in 1973 and since then it has been hosted by a different city with a different theme. So, today it is widely celebrated in more than 100 countries.
Environment Day is set aside not just as a public education effort, but it is also a way for conservationists and advocates for the environment to celebrate their hard work and successes over the year. It calls for action from people of different sections of society to do something for the environment so that their collective efforts can have a positive impact on the environment.
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.
- Also, 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.
- Also, Clean up litter on roads.
- Dispose of hazardous waste like batteries, paint cans, old electronics in recycling centres as they could prove disastrous when disposed of openly.
- Leave your car and drive a 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 involve in green spaces, the more green spaces and the environment become important to them.
“100 things” challenge group
- Start a “100 things” challenge group. This is the famous challenge to help you start living a minimalistic lifestyle that allows you to fulfil 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 of 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.
- So make a commitment to yourself, like a New Years’ resolution, to do one thing differently to increase how you benefit the environment.
Why is 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. But 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 conserve and preserve to even allow us something to argue over.
Why World Environment Day is Celebrated Today?
World environment day annual celebration campaign started to address the huge environmental issues like wastage and losses of food, deforestation, increasing global warming and so many. So every year celebration is plan according to the particular theme and slogan of the year to bring effectiveness in the campaign all through the world.
It celebrates to successfully get carbon neutrality, focusing on the forest management, reducing greenhouse effects, promoting biofuels production by planting on degraded lands, use of hydro-power to enhance electricity production, encourage the common public to use solar water heaters, energy production through solar sources, developing new drainage systems, promoting coral reefs and mangroves restoration in order to get prevent from flooding and erosion including other ways of environmental preservation. Some of the objectives of today celebrated the world environment day campaign are mention below:
- It celebrates to make aware of the common public about environmental issues.
- Encourage common people from different society and communities to actively participate in the celebration as well as become an active agent in developing environmental safety measures.
- So let them know that community people are very essential to inhibit negative changes in environmental issues.
- Encourage people to make their nearby surroundings safe and clean to enjoy safer, cleaner and more prosperous future.
World Environment Day 2018 Slogans
The environment is everything, don’t spoil it.
The environment is a gift to us, save and secure it.
Celebrate the world environment day to be an active part of this campaign.
World environment day rememorizes us about the importance of the environment.
World environment day motivates us to take positive environmental actions.
Also, World environment day make us realize our mistakes towards the environment.
Celebrate the world environment day to save the environment.
The environment is precious to life, secure it for life.
World Environment Day Quotes
“The environment is everything that isn’t me”. – Albert Einstein
“God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools”. – John Muir
“Thank God men cannot fly, and lay waste the sky as well as the earth”. – Henry David Thoreau
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”. – Margaret Mead
“We won’t have a society if we destroy the environment”. – Margaret Mead
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