First held in 1974, it has been a platform for raising awareness on environmental issue such as marine pollution, human overpopulation, global warming, sustainable consumption and wildlife crime. World Environment Day is a global platform for public outreach, with participation from over 143 countries annually. Each year, the program has provided a theme and forum for businesses, non-government organizations, communities, governments and celebrities to advocate environmental causes.

World Environment Day 2021

On World Environment Day, a clear message resonated across the globe: we must heal the planet, we must start now and we must work together because everyone has a role to play in reviving the world’s ailing ecosystems.

The UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) flagship environmental event in 2021 was both a celebration of the planet and a rallying call for action, as it also marked the formal launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which aims to mobilize hundreds of millions of people to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems. 

In a world still reeling from the devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, political leaders, activists, artists, businesses, and individuals, young and old, rallied behind a message of hope for nature, recognizing that pandemic recovery stimulus packages offer a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to shift investments towards a “restoration economy” that can provide millions of green jobs. 

During a virtual gala to launch the UN Decade, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that we may be reaching “the point of no return for the planet” as humanity ravages ecosystems. But he noted there was still time to change the narrative.

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