What is World Environment Day?

Do you know about World Environment Day? It's been around since 1972, when it was established by the UN General Assembly to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment.

Celebrated every year on June 5, World Environment Day has become one of the United Nations’ primary ways to raise global awareness of environmental issues and to help stimulate political attention, public action, and personal commitment to environmental preservation.

The theme for World Environment Day 2009 is “Your Planet Needs You—UNite to Combat Climate Change.” The theme is intended to focus attention on the need for the world’s nations to agree on a new climate treaty in 2009 to replace the Kyoto Protocol.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is also sponsoring a “Twitter for Trees” program, promising to plant a tree for every new follower at UNEPandYou on Twitter by today.

The host country for World Environment Day 2009 is Mexico, which currently accounts for approximately 1.5 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions globally. The host city in North America is Omaha, Nebraska.

How do you plan to celebrate World Environment Day? Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• The 5 Best Things You Can Do for the Environment
• 5 Ways to Help Save the Planet in 30 Minutes or Less
• 10 Things You Can Do to Reduce Global Warming