‘Tomorrow it will be too late’: Resilience in focus on World Environment Day

Sounds mimicking those of the Greater Adjutant Stork echoed through the UN House as wildlife conservationist Purnima Devi Barman and guests extended their hands to clap and imitate the bill clattering of the rare bird during this year’s UN World Environment Day celebration in New Delhi.

“The planet would be a beautiful place if each one of us could pick a species to safeguard and care for,” the UN Environment Programme Champion of the Earth said as she shared glimpses of her years-long work to protect populations and habitats of the stork in India.

Highlighting the rise in temperature worldwide, UN Resident Coordinator in India, Shombi Sharp, remarked, "Our actions are pushing the planet to the brink."

This year’s World Environment theme of land restoration, halting desertification and building drought resilience “resonates deeply with the government’s efforts to restore ecosystems,” said Sujit Kumar Bajpayee, Joint Secretary Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. 

From low-cost life jackets made of plastic bottles to help individuals in flood-prone areas in Assam, to traditional yellow cloth bags dyed with turmeric from Tamil Nadu, young people from around the country took the spotlight to showcase sustainable alternatives to plastic at the National Youth Summit – Tide Turners Challenge 2024, held at the WWF-India premises a day later.

 “India shows us many successful examples of community-led conservation models. We can benefit from the age-old knowledge of how best to live in balance with nature,” Mr. Sharp said as he joined Nitesh Kumar Mishra, Joint Secretary, Department of Youth Affairs, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and other delegates to felicitate the champions under the banner of the Tide Turners Plastic Challenge, the world’s largest youth-led movement that has seen participation from over 5 lakh youth across India till date.

“The human race has rallied behind common goals before and has triumphed,” Dia Mirza, actor, UNEP Goodwill Ambassador and UN Secretary-General Advocate for Sustainable Development Goals said, reiterating calls for collective action for the environment from Government of India officials including Franklin Khobung, Joint Secretary (NRM), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.

Click here to watch 'A Moment of Truth,' a special address by UN Secretary-General António Guterres in New York on the eve of World Environment Day.