The United Nations General Assembly designated June 5 as World Environment Day since 1972. This day marked the opening of the United Nations (UN) Conference on the Human Environment which was held in Stockholm, Sweden. This also led to the establishment of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi, Kenya. The essence of this day is to educate people about the threats to the environment and encourage them to strike a balance between development and environment.
The theme for the World Environment Day 2021 is “Ecosystem Restoration” and will see the launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Ecosystem restoration can take many forms: growing trees, greening cities, re-wilding gardens, changing diets or cleaning up rivers and coasts. This is the generation that can make peace with nature towards restoring ecosystem.
- Patients, caregivers lament as AKTH suffers blackout
- Patients, caregivers lament as AKTH suffers blackout
The World Environment Day has been a major campaign for environmental issues ranging from marine pollution, human overgrowth, and raising awareness about global warming, sustainable consumption, and wildlife crime among others. This day can also be celebrated in unique ways such as through tree planting campaigns, awareness programme in schools and on social media platforms, sensitisation programme in churches and mosques as well as distribution of flyers in public places on the importance of the day.
So I am encouraging each and every one of us to accelerate, amplify and engage people, communities and even the governments to take action on critical environmental challenges facing the planet so that we can preserve and restore ecosystem and in return, the ecosystem will provide us with its services which include food availability, water supply, fresh air among others.
Research has shown that about 75 per cent of all emerging infectious diseases in humans are transmitted to people by animals just as what the world today is suspecting the COVID-19 pandemic is also through animal to human contact. Therefore, destroying the ecosystem that supports human life is like we are destroying the web of life. Now, you can see the importance of celebrating the World Environment Day yearly is to encourage worldwide awareness and action for the protection of the environment.
Thus, we all need to put in our diaries as a reminder for the celebration of World Environment Day every June 5, and it should also be an important day for us if we care for the planet earth. This day could be the day to start changing our lifestyle so as to reduce our carbon footprint. Therefore, please play your part today by planting a tree within your immediate surrounding so that all of us can connect with nature, and also, urge everyone in your neighbourhood to stay outdoors and enjoy the breath of fresh air and appreciate its beauty and to think about how we are part of nature and how intimately we depend on it.
United for environment for better tomorrow!
Professor Nasiru Medugu Idris is the Dean, Faculty of Environmental Science, Nasarawa State University, Keffi
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