World Environment Day is a United Nations initiative aimed at raising global awareness about the perilous state of our environment and ways in which we can act to save it. Launched first in 1974, the annual event has a theme and a host country that acts as a focal point. This year, the theme is air pollution, and the host country is China – a fitting choice not only because 12,000 Chinese people die prematurely each year thanks to poor air quality, but also because China is now embarking on a massive programme of conversion from traditional fossil fuels to sustainable sources of power, largely to combat pollution.
A key aspect to World Environment Day is that everyone can take part – whether it’s simply reading about positive change you can make personally or getting involved in larger-scale projects with an ecological impact. Just visit the event’s website for more information, and to see how you can help avert a global crisis.
