World Environment Day 2014-Organizing a Community Environment Day
Every year, on June 5, the World Environment Day is celebrated to create awareness of environmental issues and to stimulate political attention, public action and personal commitment to environmental preservation. Apartment communities can do a great deal to organize various activities.
World Environment Day 2014
The World Environment Day was established in 1972 by the United Nations General Assembly to create awareness of environmental issues and to stimulate political attention, public action and personal commitment to environmental preservation. This year’s slogan for the Day is ‘Raise Your Voice Not the Sea Level.’ 2014 has been designated as the International Year of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) by the UN, addressing climate change in a broader context and in connection with protecting islands from the growing vulnerabilities due to climate change.
Organizing a Community Environment Day
You can do your bit too, irrespective of whether you live on a coastal state or not. The committee members can plan this and inform all the members prior the idea of organizing various environment friendly like conduct clean up campaigns, food waste reduction initiatives, walk-to-work days, plastic bans, tree-planting drives, recycling drives, social media campaigns etc.
It can be a one day event, or can be planned as a week long campaign, so that every member including the working class can take part in various activities during after office hours.
Save Water Message: Spread the message of water conservation through banners at prominent and visible places like entrance, parking zones, pool area, or distribute handmade leaflets, notices etc conveying the message in a thoughtful way.
Conserve Energy Message: Energy conservation is the easiest thing community members can do. This message too can be spread in a similar way and if possible, plan a switch of all lights for 30 minutes.
Reduce your carbon footprint: Most of our day-to-day activities results in the emission of greenhouse gases that constitute a considerable load on climate change. Due to heavy dependence on fossil fuels and consumption of energy, there have been drastic changes in the climate, and these could result in droughts and scarcity of food and water.
If you are planning to organize a program on World Environment Day in your community, you can think about a small skit or any other activities to convey the message in an impactful way.
Activities for Environment Day
- You can organize a poetry or essay writing competition among kids and teenagers in the community with topics like save water, save energy etc.
- A banner design competition can be held in a similar way with Save Earth as the theme.
- Community members can engage in a fun filled tree planting day on June 5 in the free spaces of your premises. If you don’t have much space in your compound, ideas like distributing seeds for home vegetable garden or common herbs which can be grown in terraces and balconies will be a good idea.
- Members who work in nearby offices can plan for a walk to office or cycling on June 5th.
While you can’t change the way things flow, be sure it can cause a ripple if you do your own small community. You can at least address many small things that people either take for granted or overlook in their daily lives.
