UN declares world’s first Earth Day – Global Issues

At that time, environmental protection was not yet a priority on national political agendas, but a growing movement was taking place across the planet.

In 1971, UN Secretary General U Thant held a special ceremony at UN Headquarters in New York, declaring April 22 as the first Earth Day.

“May there be only peaceful and joyful Earth Days for our beautiful spaceship Earth, as it continues to spin and circle in the frigid space with its warm and fragile cargo of living life,” he said at the time. “Happy Earth Day!”

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In 1972, the UN Conference on the Human Environment opened in Stockholm, marking the beginning of a global awareness of the interdependence between humans, other living species and the Earth. This historic meeting, which drew leaders from 130 countries, also established World Environment Day on June 5 and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).

Since then, the global movement has spread across the planet, with the UN helping to drive environmental awareness one major conference at a time. In 1992, more than 178 governments gathered in Rio for a conference on environment and development that became known as the “Earth Summit,” which adopted Agenda 21, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the Declaration of Principles for the Sustainable Management of Forests. accepted. . It was the first major conference in which sustainable development was the main topic discussed by UN member states.

Environmentalism is rippling across the planet

From then on, efforts to protect the environment grew exponentially. From the 1994 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its 2002 follow-up to the Johannesburg Earth Summit, to the declaration of 2008 as the International Year of Planet Earth and the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

More recently, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Goals provide a greener, cleaner and fairer path for all, and every year world leaders and civil society gather to take stock of the UNFCC at a Conference of the Parties ( COP). , with COP29 approaching in November.

This week the UN launched Climate Promise 2025 to help countries stay on track towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and from Rio to Beijing and Stockholm to Funafuti, Earth Day was celebrated around the world celebrated.

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