Tomorrow, 05 June, is World Environment Day (WED) and the slogan selected for 2007 is Melting Ice – a Hot Topic? In support of International Polar Year, the WED theme selected for 2007 focuses on the effects that climate change is having on polar ecosystems and communities, and the ensuing consequences around the world.
The main international WED 2007 celebrations will be held in Norway in the City of Tromsø, which will be hosting the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) program. A range of events, reflecting the threats from global warming to the people and wildlife across the world, are to be staged in Norway’s most northerly city as well as the capital Oslo and other Norwegian cities. 2007 also marks the start of International Polar Year.
Tromsø is a key centre for the development of nature-based tourism underlying the important economic value of healthy and pristine environments, not to mention the midnight sun in summer time. The city is situated in the heartlands of the indigenous Sami culture, and has a history inextricably linked with the marine resources of the frozen North.
But you don’t need to be in Norway to take part of this year’s WED. Street rallies, bicycles parades, green concerts, essay and poster competitions in schools, tree planting, recycling efforts, clean-up campaigns and whatever else your green imagination can come up with are all valid and welcome efforts to raise awareness of green issues and climate change on a local level.
