New Delhi: Nature may not have appeared this beautiful ever, thanks to the lockdown measures imposed in various parts of the world in the last one year. In India people cherished the fresh air, the clean water and the clear sky as nature went into healing mode, and our love for nature was restored. The ecosystem supporting life is crucial for our existence on the planet, and it's importance cannot be overlooked. However, the focus on the environment has been drifted owing to pandemic and plastic waste generation is again on the rise.
Globally, the world will celebrate the World Environment Day (WED) on June 5 to raise awareness around environmental issues starting from air pollution to illegal wildlife trade and rising sea levels to food security. Designated by the UN General Assembly in 1972, the WED was first marked in 1974 with the slogan “Only One Earth”.
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What’s the global spending required on environment?
The State of Finance for Nature report released by the UNEP (United nations Environment Programme) recently stressed that a total investment in nature of $8.1 trillion is required between now and 2050 - while annual investment should reach $536 billion annually by 2050 to tackle the interlinked climate, biodiversity, and land degradation crises.
"Biodiversity loss is already costing the global economy 10 per cent of its output each year. If we do not sufficiently finance nature-based solutions, we will impact the capacities of countries to make progress on other vital areas such as education, health and employment. If we do not save nature now, we will not be able to achieve sustainable development," Inger Andersen, the Executive Director of UNEP said.
What’s the theme of World Environment Day 2021
The theme of World Environment Day is: Ecosystem Restoration. Pakistan will be globally hosting the World Environment Day 2021. This year will witness the launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.
What is Ecosystem Restoration?
Ecosystem restoration means preventing, halting and reversing this damage – to go from exploiting nature to healing it. Under ecosystem restoration efforts will be made to repair billions of hectares of land – an area greater than China or the USA – so that people have access to food, clean water and jobs. Everyone can become part of the initiave by growing trees, greening our cities, rewilding our gardens or cleaning up trash alongside rivers and coasts.