On 5th June 2021, the world will get together virtually to celebrate the World Environment Day 2021. Since its beginning in 1974, World Environment Day has developed into a global platform for raising awareness and taking action on urgent issues from marine pollution and global warming to sustainable consumption and wildlife crime.
World Environment Day 2021 calls for urgent action to revive our damaged ecosystems. This year, 5 June, World Environment Day, marks the official launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a 10-year push to halt and reverse the decline of the natural world. Consequently, the theme of this year’s World Environment Day is Ecosystem Restoration.
The UN Decade runs from 2021 through 2030, which is also the deadline for the Sustainable Development Goals and the timeline scientists have identified as the last chance to prevent catastrophic climate change. The United Nations General Assembly has proclaimed the UN Decade following a proposal for action by over 70 countries from all latitudes.
Over 4.7 million hectares of forests – an area larger than Denmark – are lost every year. That’s one football pitch every three seconds. Over half of the world’s wetlands have disappeared in the last century. Ecosystem loss is depriving the world of carbon sinks, like forests and peatlands, at a time humanity can least afford it.
The Different types of Ecosystems:
From forests and farmlands to freshwater, oceans and coasts, the vitality and diversity of Earth’s ecosystems are the basis of human prosperity and well-being. Yet we are degrading these precious resources in alarming ways. The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration is an opportunity to help turn the tide and give people and nature a sustainable future.
How can Ecosystems be Restored ?
Ecosystem restoration means assisting in the recovery of ecosystems that have been degraded or destroyed, as well as conserving the ecosystems that are still intact.
Healthier ecosystems, with richer biodiversity, yield greater benefits such as more fertile soils, bigger yields of timber and fish, and larger stores of greenhouse gases.
All kinds of ecosystems can be restored, including forests, farmlands, cities, wetlands and oceans. Restoration initiatives can be launched by almost anyone, from governments and development agencies to businesses, communities and individuals.
Restoration can happen in many ways – for example through actively planting or by removing pressures so that nature can recover on its own.
Between now and 2030, the restoration of 350 million hectares of degraded terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems could generate US$9 trillion in ecosystem services. Restoration could also remove 13 to 26 gigatons of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.
The economic benefits of such interventions exceed nine times the cost of investment, whereas inaction is at least three times more costly than ecosystem restoration.
World Environment Day 2021: Events
This World Environment Day, join #GenerationRestoration to revive and protect our ecosystems. Pakistan will act as global host of the day.
Join the Movement:
Find out how you can take part in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.
World Environment Day 2021
UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration
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Ecosystem: Structure, Functions & Components
