The Celebrations on the continent further included an eco-trail run in Geneva, the\u00a0Festival de l’environnement<\/em>\u00a0in Brussels and the launch of a World Environment Day themed song.<\/p>\n In Africa, Kenya \u00admarked the World Environment Day with a fashion show featuring striking pieces from local eco-conscious designers. A bike ride through the center of the capital, Nairobi, was followed by the official celebrations, which included a ceremonial tree planting exercise, cultural performances and art exhibitions.<\/p>\n A number of African countries \u2013 South Africa, Rwanda, Morocco, Tanzania, Senegal, C\u00f4te d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Niger, Nigeria, Algeria \u2013 also commemorated the day with official events.<\/p>\n Marking the event, Tunisia underlined its commitment to sustainable development and tackling environment issues. Tunisia decided to launch on June 9 a “downtown free from cars” overture to spread awareness about the importance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\n Egypt celebrated the World Environment Day by launching an initiative of planting one million trees nationwide. The initiative serves several goals, including disseminating awareness about the importance of curbing climate change, serving food security and combating desertification.<\/p>\n In Upper Egypt governorate of Luxor, Youth Love Egypt Foundation \u00a0launched in tandem with the United Nation News Center in Cairo “Clean Shores” initiative to clean the Nile banks in Luxor.<\/p>\n In Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, youth-led\u00a0flashmobs<\/em>\u00a0drew attention to the issue of air pollution right before the start of the Eid-Al Fitr festivities. Celebrations in Bahrain started on the 3rd<\/sup>\u00a0of June with the planting of 150 Neem trees, and a mass cycling event in partnership with the Embassy of India in Bahrain.<\/p>\n Marking the event, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon raised the slogan of “Save the Earth and Ride a Bike.”<\/p>\n In New York, climate, health and building experts discussed air pollution as a global health emergency and a leading environmental threat to the city, while almost 90 third grade students at the School for Environmental Studies and Community Wellness in Brooklyn gathered to compose \u201cLove Letters to the Air,\u201d an arts-integrated, creative letter-writing project that promotes positive change for our planet.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Warren, an American politician who has launched a 2020 presidential campaign, released a comprehensive plan\u00a0for investment in the clean energy economy. The proposal calls for $2 trillion in total investments over the next decade, including funding for a National Institute of Clean Energy, using the purchasing power of the federal government to mainstream emissions-free technologies, and a $100 billion \u201cGreen Marshall Plan\u201d to help other countries purchase US-made green technologies and commit to reducing their carbon emissions.<\/p>\n In response, Greenpeace USA Senior Climate Campaigner Jack Shapiro said \u201cWith this plan, Elizabeth Warren is seizing the enormous opportunity that transitioning to 100 percent clean energy represents for people across the country. The renewable energy economy is a win-win for our climate and communities, and should be at the core of any plan to create jobs and spur innovation.”<\/p>\n \u201cBut we know that investing in renewables alone will not be enough to stave off climate crisis \u2014 our next president has to confront the fossil fuel industry, as well. To truly take the lead on climate, Warren needs to lay the groundwork for a world without fossil fuels by issuing a detailed plan to responsibly phase out all oil, gas, and coal production.\u201d<\/p>\n Warren was the first candidate to commit\u00a0to banning fossil fuel extraction on public lands on her first day in office, helping her earn sixth place in Greenpeace\u2019s 2020 climate ranking released last week. Public lands extraction accounts for roughly 25 percent of US greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\n In Ecuador, regional host of World Environment Day, young people planted 1,000 native trees minutes from the crater of the Pululahua, one of the few inhabited volcanoes in the planet.<\/p>\n In Haiti and Mexico, UN Environment hosted film festivals on the environment. The Mexican state of Guanajuato saw further celebrations, including a nighttime bike ride.<\/p>\n Cycling was also on the agenda in Peru, where a massive bike ride was organized in the capital, Lima, to commemorate World Environment Day. In Brazil, 10 states organized bike rides over the course of a week, while the city of S\u00e3o Paolo formally launched the implementation of a national network for air quality monitors.<\/p>\n Other World Environment Day celebrations in Asia and the Pacific took place in Myanmar, where the President launched the country\u2019s environmental and climate change policies, India, where the Agra government announced their clean air plan and Thailand, where events attended by the Governor of Bangkok and top officials from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment saw musical performances, activities and panel discussions on air pollution.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, nine governments; namely Bogot\u00e1 (Colombia), Lalitpur and Kathmandu (Nepal), Honduras, Bogor City (Indonesia), the Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Montevideo (Uruguay) and Mexico, made commitments to bring air quality to safe levels by 2030, by joining the\u00a0BreatheLife campaign<\/a>, a joint initiative by UN Environment, the World Health Organization, the Climate and Clean Air Coalition and the World Bank.<\/p>\n By committing to BreatheLife, the nine governments demonstrate their dedication to collaborate on the clean air solutions that will help the world to be free of air pollution faster. The new commitments bring the number of cities, regions and countries in the BreatheLife network to 63, representing 271.4 million citizens around the world.<\/p>\n On the World Environment Day (WED) several famous companies announced their plans to end plastic wastes.<\/p>\n Costa Coffee UAE has announced a string of sustainability initiatives all to reduce wastage across its stores.<\/p>\n One of its initiatives was offering coffee for free in stores across the UAE for all customers who bring in their reusable cup on WED.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not all, as Costa has now turned its attention towards straws. To celebrate this planet saving swap, COSTA Coffee has partnered with Dubai International Airport (DXB) and commissioned award-winning sculpture artist Mariska Nell to create an upcycled straw globe installation.<\/p>\n Made from 60,000 leftover straws, the \u2018Last Straw\u2019 project is a modern art piece for passengers of the world’s busiest international airport to see and remind them to take greater care of the planet.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Nestle Middle East said it seeks to get all of the company\u2019s packaging across the world to be recyclable or reusable by 2025.<\/p>\n Nestl\u00e9 is playing an active role in developing plastics collection, sorting and recycling schemes across the region, where it\u2019s contributing to industry coalitions that aim to create circular economies within countries, recycling and reusing in a manner that creates shared value for all involved.<\/p>\n Nestl\u00e9 Middle East has since 2010 achieved a 42% reduction in water withdrawal per ton of product, a 34% decrease in energy consumption, and 28% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, while its production went up by 68%. The company has also achieved Zero waste for disposal at its food manufacturing sites in the region.<\/p>\n The announcement, made on World Environment Day which is commemorated since 1974 every June 5th, \u201cis in line with our commitment to steward resources for future generations through caring for water, safeguarding the environment and acting on climate change, and helps us fulfill our purpose of Enhancing Quality of Life and Contributing to a Healthier Future,\u201d said Siva Kumar, Regional Safety, Health, & Environment Manager at Nestl\u00e9 Middle East.<\/p>\n One example of how this is done is through Nestl\u00e9 Middle East manufacturing sites installing nearly 28,000 solar PV panels, thus reducing at least six million kilograms of CO2 emissions annually, which is the equivalent of eliminating the carbon emissions of nearly 1,500 passenger cars for one year, or the energy consumption of 800 homes annually.<\/p>\n Research and multi-sectoral partnerships are also being developed, with recent examples including the creation of the Nestl\u00e9 Institute of Packaging Science to evaluate and develop new sustainable packaging material and solutions in collaboration with academia, supplier, startups, and others. This will ensure all of the company\u2019s packaging across the world is recyclable or reusable by 2025.<\/p>\n Moreover, NESCAF\u00c9 Dolce Gusto is teaming up with the United Arab Emirates\u2019 environmental management leader Bee\u2019ah to launch a recycling program that makes it easy for coffee lovers to drop off their used capsules at convenient locations in Dubai and Sharjah.<\/p>\n The move, in line with Nestl\u00e9’s commitment to make 100% of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025, is reminding people that \u201crecycling your brew starts with you,\u201d as noted by Raef Labaky, Nescaf\u00e9 Business Executive Manager at Nestl\u00e9 Middle East. People will receive a bag with every online purchase and can also just ask for one without making any purchases at the drop off sites located at NESCAF\u00c9 Dolce Gusto\u2019s pop up shops in Dubai Festival City and Mirdif City Center as well as outside the Bee\u2019ah headquarters in Sharjah.<\/p>\n \u201cCoffee lovers can thus play an active role in helping the environment, as we will be delivering all deposited capsules to Bee\u2019ah on a weekly basis for recycling with their plastic products,\u201d added Labaky.<\/p>\n Fahad Shehail, CEO of Waste Management Services at Bee\u2019ah, said \u201cBee\u2019ah is a strong believer in effectively reaching all consumer segments within the public sphere to encourage behavioral change and sustainable practices, and we are confident that our partnership with NESCAF\u00c9 Dolce Gusto will assist us in achieving these key goals.\u201d<\/p>\n Joining this march, Procter & Gamble announced that it plans to trial refillable packaging for its olay REgenerist Whip moisturizer for three months starting this October. The company says its goal is to reduce plastic waste. The move follows Procter & Gamble\u2019s participation in\u00a0Loop<\/a>, a pilot program that offers users refillable packaging in select markets.<\/p>\n It\u2019s great to see more companies trialing refill and reuse options, but these programs must be executed properly and given a chance to succeed. This requires making refillable products accessible to as many people as possible and educating customers on the importance of reuse.<\/p>\n Hope is glimmering as the whole world is drumming up efforts to implement the\u00a02030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which calls for protecting the planet and its natural resources, taking action vis-\u00e0-vis climate change, improving people’s health and depending on clean energy.<\/p>\n Hopefully, all the aforementioned initiatives would achieve their goals for a better future for the planet and the coming generations.<\/p>\n WB spends $ 5 trillion annually to contain air pollution<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.csregypt.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/shutterstock_357228251-1-300x200.jpg\")
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