Today Celebrates World Environment Day 2023 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.
With countries under lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak, one positive which seems to have come out of this whole situation is that our environment has become better. When you look outside your balcony, you see more birds on the trees and in the morning wake up to their chirping. Pollution levels have reduced and the air has become cleaner too.
It is only if we keep on taking care of the environment around us – that in turn shall benefit us. World Environment Day is celebrated every year on June 5, so that people are reminded that we should not take nature for granted. It is an event that takes place all over the world and organises by the United Nations, who celebrate it for the first time in 1972 by the UN General assembly, during the first day of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment.
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 2023: Biodiversity
For 2023, the theme for World Environment Day is ‘Solutions to plastic Pollution’ under the campaign #BeatPlaticPollution. Do you know more than 400 million tonnes of plastic is designed every year? Among them half of it is for single use and only 10% is recycled. This is a very relevant theme because not only humans but also aquatic animals suffer.
Here are some quotes on the environment which you should read and can share with family and friends:
“If we do not permit the earth to produce beauty and joy, it will in the end not produce food, either”. – Joseph Wood Krutch
“Conservation is a state of harmony between men and land”. – Aldo Leopold
“People blame their environment. There is only one person to blame – and only one – themselves”. – Robert Collier
“Take a course in good water and air, and in the eternal youth of Nature, you may renew your own. Go quietly, alone; no harm will befall you”. – John Muir
“What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another” – Mahatma Gandhi
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. Also, 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. So 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. So 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. So 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?
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 a plan according to the particular theme. And the 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. So 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. So 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 2023 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 2023 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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