What
does World Wildlife Day entail?
On 20 December
2013, at its 68th session, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) proclaimed
3 March, the day of signature of the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). With 183 Member States,
CITES remains one of the world's most influential tools for biodiversity
conservation through the regulation of trade in wild fauna and flora. The CITES
Secretariat was designated as the facilitator for the global observance of this
special day for wildlife on the UN calendar. It’s a day to celebrate and raise awareness of the
world’s wild animals and plants. It is about raising awareness of the multitude
of benefits that conservation provides to people and helps to galvanize
national and international action. Today it’s the world’s most important global
annual event dedicated exclusively to wildlife. It reminds people of the urgent
need to step up the fight against wildlife crime, which has wide-ranging
economic, environmental and social impacts.
Theme
for 2017
Every year a
specific theme is used to celebrate this important environmental day on the
calendar.
This year WWD is celebrated with a “Listen to the Young Voices” theme in mind. Youth
are essentially the agents of change. This is definitely an important and
relevant theme because almost one quarter of the world’s population is aged
between 10 and 24. Therefore, efforts need to be made in order to encourage
young people because they are the future leaders and decision makers of the
world, and, thus, to act at both local and global levels to ensure that the
protection of endangered wildlife occurs. One thing that is high on the United
Nation’s agenda is the engagement and empowerment of youth. Currently, this
objective is being achieved through the youth programmes of various UN system
organizations and the dedicated UN Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth. Parties
to CITES gathered at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP17)
(held in Johannesburg in September 2016) adopted the first CITES resolution on
‘Youth Engagement’ – calling for greater engagement and empowerment of youth in
conservation issues. This year, WWD specifically 2017 encourages youth all over
the world to rally together to address on-going major threats to wildlife including
habitat change, over-exploitation or illicit trafficking. Thankfully, progress
has already been seen on the positive impacts on conservation issues made by
some young conservation leaders around the world. The collective youth impact
is extensive and indisputable. It is the duty of the current generations to
impart their knowledge of wildlife conservation with the younger generations,
and thereby empowering and encouraging them to actively engage and participate.
Plight of wildlife
Wildlife has an
intrinsic value, contributing to the ecological, genetic, social, economic,
scientific, educational, cultural, recreational and aesthetic aspects of
sustainable development and human well-being. But, alarming challenges
facing wildlife include habitat loss, climate change and poaching. Poaching and
trafficking of wildlife is the most immediate threat to many species. The fate of the world’s wildlife will soon be
in the hands of the next generation. There’s
is a pressing need for enhanced action to ensure the survival of wildlife in
its natural habitats.
Get
involved!
WWD is celebrated in various ways in order
to help promote awareness about wildlife conservation issues around the world.
So, go wild for World Wildlife Day by:
·
Making sure to announce your applicable
event so we can see how World Wildlife Day is being celebrated around the
world!
·
Posting on social media. Repost one
of our photos, posters or use one of our action cards and say something about
the day. Remember to use the hashtags #DoOneThingToday, #youth4wildlife,
#YoungVoices, #WorldWildlifeDay,
#EndWildlifeTrafficking
·
Entering the World Wildlife Day
2017 Photo Competition (The winner will get a free flight and 2 night
accommodation to New York for World Wildlife day 2017)!
·
Engaging with celebrities,
athletes, politicians, businesses and appoint them as Wildlife Conservation
Ambassadors or key opinion leaders.
Local
communities can play a positive role in helping to curb illegal wildlife trade.
So, WWD provides an excellent opportunity to help raise awareness and take
action to be part of the solution, ensuring that wildlife conservation takes
place and wildlife crimes are combatted. The message of
the official World Wildlife Day website is clear: WE ALL HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY.
It is also up to every citizen, young and old, to protect wildlife and their
habitats. IT’S TIME FOR US ALL TO LISTEN TO THE YOUNG VOICES!
References
http://www.un.org/en/events/wildlifeday/
