World Environment Day 2021, June 5th

                                    

FORUM: REIMAGINE. RECREATE. RESTORE.. World Environment Day 2021.

                 

The emergence of COVID-19 has also shown just how disastrous the consequences of ecosystem loss can be. By shrinking the area of natural habitat for animals, we have created ideal conditions for pathogens – including coronaviruses – to spread. With this big and challenging picture, the World Environment Day is focus in the ecosystem restoration and its theme is “Reimagine. Recreate.Restore.”

Ecosystem restoration means preventing, halting and reversing this damage – to go from exploiting nature to healing it. This World Environment Day will kick off the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030), a global mission to revive billions of hectares, from forests to farmlands, from the top of mountains to the depth of the sea. Only with healthy ecosystems can we enhance people’s livelihoods, counteract climate change and stop the collapse of biodiversity.

                                                                      

Statement by the United Nations Secretary General on World Environment Day 2021, June 5th.

We are rapidly reaching the point of no return for the planet.

We face a triple environmental emergency –biodiversity loss, climate disruption and escalating pollution.

For too long, humanity has cut down the Earth's forests, polluted its rivers and oceans, and ploughed its grasslands into oblivion.

We are ravaging the very ecosystems that underpin our societies.

And, in doing so, we risk depriving ourselves of the food, water and resources we need to survive.

The degradation of the natural world is already undermining the well-being of 3.2 billion people – or 40 per cent of humanity.

Luckily, the Earth is resilient.

But she needs our help.

We still have time to reverse the damage we have done.

That is why, on this World Environment Day, we are launching the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.

This global movement will bring together governments, businesses, civil society and private citizens in an unprecedented effort to heal the Earth.

By restoring ecosystems, we can drive a transformation that will contribute to the achievement of all the Sustainable Development Goals.

The task is monumental.

We need to replant and protect our forests.

We need to clean up our rivers and seas.

And we need to green our cities.

Accomplishing these things will not only safeguard the planet’s resources.

It will create millions of new jobs by 2030, generate returns of over $7 trillion dollars every year and help eliminate poverty and hunger.

The United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration is a global call to action.

It will draw together political support, scientific research and financial muscle to massively scale up restoration.

Everyone can contribute.

Science tells us these next 10 years are our final chance to avert a climate catastrophe, turn back the deadly tide of pollution and end species loss.

So, let today be the start of a new decade – one in which we finally make peace with nature and secure a better future for all.


António Guterres

OTHER STATEMENTS:

Statement by UNESCO Director-General on World Environment Day 2021, June 5th.

Statement by UNEP Executive Director on World Environment Day 2021, June 5th.

PUBLICATION:

UNEP has published a practical guide to ecosystem restoration that provides an introduction to the range of actions that can slow and halt the degradation of ecosystems and foster their recovery.

Secretary-General's message on World Environment Day

Latest Statements

New York, 5 June 2012 - Secretary-General's message on World Environment Day

As the world gears up for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), World Environment Day is an opportunity to highlight the need for a paradigm shift towards a more sustainable world.  This year’s theme, “Green Economy: Does it include you?”, underscores the need for everyone to play their part in keeping humankind's ecological footprint within planetary boundaries.
The world’s population stands at 7 billion and may rise to more than 9 billion by 2050.  This means greater pressure on already crowded cities – where more than half of all people now live – and on natural resources, as demand for food, water and energy rises.  It also means more people in search of decent jobs.  Globally, 1.3 billion people are currently unemployed or under-employed.  An estimated half billion more will join the job market over the next decade.
Sustainability entails providing opportunity for all by balancing the social, economic and environmental dimensions of development.  We have to rebut the myth that there is conflict between economic and environmental health.  With smart policies and the right investments, countries can protect their environment, grow their economies, generate decent jobs and accelerate social progress.
Rio+20 is our opportunity to deepen global commitment to sustainable development.  In Rio, we should agree that measuring growth and wealth by Gross Domestic Product alone is inadequate.  We should agree that the world needs a set of sustainable development goals that will build on the Millennium Development Goals.  And we should make progress on some of the building blocks of sustainability – energy, water, food, cities, oceans, jobs and the empowerment of women.
Sustainability is gaining prominence on the public policy agenda in both developed and developing nations.  The UN itself is working towards climate neutrality and sustainable management of our offices and activities.  In Rio, we must mobilize the partnerships we need to shift the world onto a more sustainable trajectory of growth and development.  On this World Environment Day, in advance of this historic conference, I urge governments, businesses and all members of society to make the holistic choices that will ensure a sustainable future – the future we want.