Introduction
World
Environmental Day
is annually celebrated on the 5th of June and is the most commemorated
of all the environmental awareness days in over 100 countries. In 1972 the UN
General Assembly chose June 5 as World Environment Day (WED), marking the first
day of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. It is a platform for
public outreach to stimulate and deepen global awareness of the need to care
for, preserve, and enhance Mother Nature. It is a day to acknowledge and
personalise environmental issues and to evoke positive environmental action
amongst all people. It inspires individual and collective action to do
something positive for the environment, to realise that each of us has a
responsibility to protect to it from further destruction, and to take care of
it indefinitely.
People
must become environmental agents of change. Notably, it is also a day to learn
more about ways that people can help to ensure the future of our planet is safe
and a cleaner and greener outlook for not only themselves, but, more prominently,
for future generations to make greener lifestyle choices and support
sustainable and equitable development. It is also known as the ‘people’s day’
for doing something to take care of the Earth. It puts a spotlight on all the
achievements and effective actions that have been implemented to protect
life-nurturing Mother Nature.
Each year a different global country is assigned as the host of WED where
official celebrations occur and this year’s host is Angola. A greater emphasis is
placed on the environmental challenges that this specific country is faced with
and support is provided in an effort to address them.
Importance of
WED
As a result of decades celebrating this momentous day, millions of
people from all over the world have participated in imperative environmental
action. Furthermore, it is celebrated to look at all the achievements that have
been made towards protecting the environment. It reminds individuals
and countries of the importance of caring for our environment. It encourages
societies to actively participate in becoming an agent in curbing negative
environmental impacts.
Being a part of the celebrations, it provides an opportunity for
people to share ideas and activities to make the world a better,
environmentally-friendly place. As the official WED 2016 website reminds as,
“Remember that every action counts, so join us: every year, everywhere,
everyone!”
Theme
Each year a
specific theme for WED is chosen by the United Nations to promote awareness on
a specific and pressing environmental issue. WED 2016’s theme is: The illegal trade in wildlife under
the slogan ‘Go Wild for Life’.
Wildlife not
only faces man-made and natural threats such as climate change, habitat loss,
and collisions with vehicles, but also one incredibly yet totally avoidable
danger: the lucrative illegal wildlife trade. Huge profits can be made from
ivory and rhino and is a very attractive commodity. This year focuses
specifically on highlighting the dangers illegal wildlife trade has on our
wellbeing. This illegal yet booming trade is fast eroding Mother Nature’s
precious biodiversity but it is depriving us of our wonderful natural heritage.
If this trade isn’t curbed swiftly, extinction is imminent. Furthermore, the killing
and smuggling undermine economies and ecosystems. Through this senselessly
shocking practice, elephants, rhinos, tigers, gorillas, and sea turtles are
threatened. Other lesser-known species that are also negatively impacted
include helmeted hornbills, pangolins, wild orchids and timbers like Rosewood. Notably,
efforts to counter this illegal trade, including stronger policies, awareness campaigns and investments in
community conservation and law enforcement, have occurred. But a lot can still
be done.
It is important
to convey a zero-tolerance for this illegal trade. This year all people are
encouraged to celebrate those species that are under sever threat in order to
take action to help safeguard them for not only current, but also future
generations to come.
The rationale
behind this year’s theme is that the illegal trade in wildlife will ultimately
lead to extinction (both at a local and global scale) of many animal and plant
species. The extinction of elephant, tiger and sea turtle species will be detrimental for conservation efforts. Wildlife crime is a rising
threat to economies and communities, especially in developing countries. The
loss of a species is a destruction of the biodiversity that supports
the natural systems and on which we depend for food security, medicines, fresh
air, water, shelter and a clean environment. By reducing human-wildlife
conflict and, simultaneously, engaging communities in conservation efforts, there
will be an increase support for wildlife protection and provide incentive to
reduce poaching.
Facts on illegal trade on wildlife
·
100,000 African elephants were killed in
2010-2012, out of a population estimated at less than
500,000.
·
Illegal
trade in wildlife is worth $15-20
billion annually, and is one of the largest illegal trades in the world.
·
Poachers
in Africa killed at least 1,338 rhinos in
2015, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
·
Rhino poaching in South Africa
increased by almost 9,000% or
90-fold between 2007 and 2015 from 13 rhinos killed in 2007 to 1,175 rhinos killed in 2015.
·
An
estimated 170 tonnes of ivory was
illegally exported out of Africa between 2009 and 2014.
·
Between
2002 and 2011 there was a 2/3 plummet in Forest Elephant population due to
poaching.
·
Since
2009 there has been a 60% decline African Savannah Elephants in the United
Republic of Tanzania and a 50% decline in African Savannah Elephants in
Mozambique.
·
Chimpanzees
are now extinct in Gambia,
Burkina Faso, Benin and Togo.
·
3,000 Great
Apes are lost from the wild every year and have disappeared from Gambia, Burkina Faso, Benin and Togo;
over 70% of all great ape seizures are
orangutans.
·
Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU)
fishing is estimated at 11-26 million tonnes of fish each year, worth between
$10 and $23 billion, causing depletion of fish stocks, price increase and loss
of livelihoods for fishermen.
·
Pangolins are the most illegally
trafficked mammal in the world with over one million animals taken from the
wild in the past decade.
·
40% of all intrastate conflicts in the last 60 years were linked to
natural resources and over 80% of
major armed conflicts in the last 50 years occurred in biodiversity hotspots.
·
In 2011, a subspecies of Javan rhino went extinct in Vietnam, while the
last western black rhinos vanished from Cameroon the same year.
(Source: Official World Environment Day 2016
website).
Partaking in WED
Activities
WED is
celebrated in various ways such as bicycle parades, concerts, poster
competitions, tree planting, recycling efforts, and clean-up campaigns.
In terms of
this year’s theme, the following can be done:
·
People need
to understand the damage that illegal trade has on, not only the environment,
but
also their livelihoods, communities, and security.
·
People
must change their behaviour and habits so that demand for illegal wildlife
products
declines.
·
More
awareness and action will enable governments and international bodies to
introduce and
enforce tougher laws.
In terms of
using social media as a platform to show your support, the following can be
done:
·
Share
all the information related to this important environmental event.
·
Encourage
as many people as possible to ‘like’, ‘tweet’ or comment on WED.
·
Use
hashtags #worldenvironmentday #wed2016 #wildforlife and make use of the following three
posters:
·
More
information can be obtained from: www.uneporg/wed.
·
Make use
of the official logo on social media platforms:
·
Make use
of the following official WED posters:
In general
environmental-friendly terms, the following can be done:
·
Adopt an
eco-friendly, sustainable lifestyle, and set green goals.
·
The
smallest thing, such as recycling can make a huge difference.
·
Eat
organic food.
·
Make
meals only from locally grown products.
·
Leave
your car and drive a bicycle or take public transport.
·
Wear
green clothes to show that you care for Mother Nature.
·
Set up a
recycling programme at home or the office.
·
Use
reusable shopping bags.
·
Plant a
tree or indigenous plants.
·
Take a nature
walk and enjoy being outdoors.
·
Create
your own vegetable and herb garden.
Important Environmental-related
Quotes
·
"Take care of the earth and she will take care of
you." - Author Unknown
·
"We
never know the worth of water till the well is dry." - Thomas Fuller
·
"We do not
inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children." - Native
American Proverb
·
"When
we heal the earth, we heal ourselves." - David Orr
·
"The
world is a fine place and worth fighting for." - Ernest Hemingway
·
“The
environment is everything that isn’t me”. – Albert Einstein
·
“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
·
“It
is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment”.
– Ansel Adams
·
“I
think the environment should be put in the category of our national security.
Defense of our resources is just as important as defense abroad. Otherwise what
is there to defend”? – Robert Redford
·
“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
·
“Birds
are indicators of the environment. If they are in trouble, we know we’ll soon
be in trouble”. – Roger Tory Peterson
·
“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
·
“The
only way forward, if we are going to improve the quality of the environment, is
to get everybody involved”. – Richard Rogers
·
“Journey
with me to a true commitment to our environment. Journey with me to the
serenity of leaving to our children a planet in equilibrium”. – Paul Tsongas
·
“Earth
Day 1970 was irrefutable evidence that the American people understood the
environmental threat and wanted action to resolve it”. – Barry Commoner
·
“The
most important environmental issue is one that is rarely mentioned, and that is
the lack of a conservation ethic”. – Gaylord Nelson
Conclusion
Please
keep your world clean and green. Earth is the only liveable planet, help save it
for future generations, and abide by environmental laws. The need for change is
pressing because if something isn’t seriously done to protect species,
extinction will be imminent. The responsibility lies with all of us to take
immediate action. So, make a difference - the time to act is now! Take a step
in the green direction. Remember, Every Day should be World Environment Day!
References
