The World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF) and the US Embassy marked the 41st Earth Day with activities to clean the Trail-5 at the Margalla Hills in the federal capital on Friday.
Over 50 youngsters, including students from the embassy’s English-language ACCESS Micro-scholarship programme, picked up trash and rehabilitated trees along the trail as a part of the celebrations. The Earth Day is celebrated each year on April 22 and marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern US environmental movement in 1970. Over the last 40 years, countries celebrate the event with green activities that promote a healthy and sustainable environment and raise environmental awareness.
Against the backdrop of this year’s theme, ‘A Billion Acts of Green’, these activities served to raise awareness about protecting the environment and the proper disposal of trash. Speaking at the closing ceremony, Dr Marilyn Wyatt, wife of US Ambassador Cameron Munter, highlighted the importance of the day recognised by the United Nations and observed each year by more than 500 million people in 175 countries. Meanwhile, Federal Minister for Environment and Women Development Samina Khalid Ghurki said the human activities resulting in environmental degradation had a very negative impact on natural resources.
Speaking at the distribution ceremony of WWF Pakistan Environmental Reporting Awards, she the business community must play a pivotal role in providing the desired stimulus and support to the efforts of the Government of Pakistan to successfully overcome the challenges of the 21st century. She said rapidly changing socio-economic environment placed greater responsibilities and demands on the business community to set and pursue environmental strategies for self-sustaining environmental processes.
