On June 5, 1974, the United Nations celebrated the first World Environment Day, a day for reflection and action to protect our planet from the environmental hazards caused by economic expansion. The theme for World Environment Day 2020 is “Biodiversity — A call to action to combat the accelerating species loss and degradation of the natural world.”
The latest report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Systems (IPBES) notes that one million plant and animal species are currently facing extinction - some within just decades. The good news is that there’s still time to fix it. By changing our own habits and increasing accountability for the protection of the earth, we can remodel our economies with the protection of the planet as a priority.
What Can You Do?
The United Nations offers a few practical tips for how you can affect change in your own community to support our environment:
1. Learn. Take time to reflect on how we humans rely on nature for our own sustainability and learn about how the choices you make can affect positive change.
A) Learn about what your city and country is doing to protect the environment
2. Share. Share what you’ve learned about our environment and its degradation, and share what you will do to make a difference in the community around you.
A) Join the Cities4Forests photo contest - they will plant a tree for each post. https://cities4forests.com/forest-challenge/
B) Share companies on your social media platform that are working locally to support environmental causes in your community and beyond
3. Act. Turn what you’ve learned about climate change and biodiversity into action that supports efforts to save our environment from permanent degradation.
A) Change your diet to more locally produced, environmentally-friendly food sources, paying particular attention to protein sources
B) Buy from eco-friendly companies that are invested in working towards a healthier planet
In celebration of World Environment Day, I LIVE ECO will plant one tree for each new subscription beginning on June 5. We are proud to partner with https://onetreeplanted.org/ to support reforestation efforts around the world.
Share what you’re doing to support biodiversity for World Environment Day on Instagram and Facebook with the #ILIVEECO. Working together, we can be the change we want to see.