UAE gears up for Earth Day

More than one billion people from 190 countries are taking a stand on Tuesday in recognition of Earth Day, from San Francisco to San Juan, and Beijing to Brussels — and cities in the UAE are no exception. This year's Earth Day, which is marked on April 22, focuses on Green Cities and the urgency on creating awareness among community members in transforming cities into sustainable ones. Earth Day was renamed officially by the UN in 2009 as International Mother Earth Day. "Earth Day is a great opportunity for the global population to take a pause and consider how they can lower their impact on the planet,” said Ida Tillisch, Director- General, Emirates Wildlife Society-World Wildlife Fund. Tillisch pointed out that during this year's Earth Day, the EWS-WWF encourages the UAE to switch to energy-efficient lighting in a bid to significantly reduce the country's footprint because if the whole country switched to this, the country could save carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to removing 165,000 cars off the roads annually. "Our planet provides sustenance for millions of species and billions of beings, however humanity's impact is depleting its precious resources and Earth Day serves as a reminder to care for and appreciate those resources,” she said. Activities across the nation are taking place, most notably, one that is organised by the Emirates Environment Group (EEG) — aimed at students. Future generations EEG Chairperson Habiba Al Marashi on Monday explained that the organisation has been marking Earth Day for the past 14 years, and has always looked to ways to raise the level of awareness of student's habits so that they may pave the future's sustainability road map for future generations. "On Earth Day, we have always carried out events to highlight environmental issues, such as sustainable use of resources, recycling, pollution and waste levels, and green technology,” said Habiba. More than 80 schools from across the country will be participating in the Interschool Public Speaking Competition, held at Knowledge Village in Dubai on Tuesday. Elementary and high school students will be discussing environmental issues related to food wastage, the school curriculum and the impact on the environment, green economies, and how technology can create more pollutants. Sharjah will be hosting its third edition of myBee'ah Walkathon on Tuesday, which was launched to raise awareness about environmental issues in Sharjah. The three km walkathon will start at Al Qasba at 4pm and end at Al Majaz Waterfront at 8pm. Source: Gulf News