World Environment Day

“A nation that destroys its soil, destroys itself.”

— Franklin D Roosevelt Today is World Environment Day. You would be forgiven if you thought we just observed that day last month; that was Earth Day.

World Environment Day is celebrated on June 5 every year to remind us that we are not alone on this planet. There is a huge biological ecosystem at play and human beings survive because of it.

The United Nations Assembly established World Environment Day in 1972, on the first day of the Stockholm Conference on the human environment. It is meant to generate awareness about the significance of nature and greenery.

Every year, responsibility is given to a country to host the event and provide a platform to discuss Sustainable Development Goals. Last year, World Environment Day was hosted by Colombia in partnership with Germany. Conservation of biodiversity was the theme of the 2020 event.

This year, Pakistan is hosting World Environment Day. The theme is “Ecosystem Restoration,” with a special focus on creating a good relationship with nature. Why Pakistan?

In 2014, the government of Pakistan started a massive afforestation drive called a “Billion Tree Tsunami.” The ambitious project included restoring mangroves, increasing forest cover, and planting trees in urban settings. More recently, Pakistan launched a new platform called the “Ecosystem Restoration Fund” to create green jobs, support nature-based solutions to fight climate change and promote biodiversity conservation.

It’s empowering to think that today, people around the world are sharing the message: nature should not be taken for granted and must be respected for its values.

Speaking of today’s world, with the coronavirus outbreak and so many people confined indoors, the environment and mother earth seem to have benefitted slightly. In the absence of human activities amid the coronavirus induced lock down, nature is getting time to clean itself and reclaim its space.

It’s vital that we acknowledge, celebrate and respect everything that the environment has given us.

“Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at will change!” A perfect quote on this “World Environment Day.” It also might help explain the photo. Warren Hoeg snapped this picture in Dartmouth, N.S.; it’s what Lupins look like from above.