World Environment Day 2022
5 June is World Environment Day. In 2022 the Earth faces a triple planetary emergency:
- the climate is heating up too quickly for people and nature to adapt;
- habitat loss and other pressures mean an estimated 1 million species are threatened with extinction;
- pollution continues to poison our air, land and water.
We are using the equivalent of 1.6 Earths to maintain our current way of life, and ecosystems cannot keep up with our demands.
Our lifestyles are associated with two thirds of all greenhouse gas emissions - studies show that sustainable lifestyles and behaviours could reduce our emissions by 40 to 70% by 2050.
Sustainable consumption and production can drive economic development, mitigate climate change, positively impact health and pollution, and help alleviate poverty – potentially increasing incomes by an average of 11% in low- and medium-income countries by 2060, and 4% in high-income countries.
How can we stop degrading our environment?
The way out of this dilemma is to transform our economies and societies to make them inclusive, fair and more connected with nature. We must shift from harming the planet to healing it.
The good news is the solutions and the technology exist and are increasingly affordable.
#OnlyOneEarth is the campaign for World Environment Day 2022. It calls for collective, transformative action on a global scale to celebrate, protect and restore our planet.
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has has published a practical guide outlining some of the collective, transformative actions that governments, cities, businesses, organizations and individuals can take to protect and restore our planet.
Download the #OnlyOneEarth Practical Guide.
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