Riyadh, June 5, 2024 – With a focus on restoring degraded lands, fighting desertification and building drought resilience, countries around the world came together today to mark World Environment Day 2024 under the slogan “Our Land. Our Future. We are the #RestorationGeneration”.
In a major milestone for the environmental movement, official celebrations hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia marked only the second time World Environment Day was held in the West Asia region in over 50 years. The region is facing more severe and longer-lasting droughts, dust storms and rising temperatures, and deserts are expanding., Freshwater sources evaporate and fertile soil erodes.
World Environment Day 2024 saw a record number of events organised by governments, cities, civil society, universities, schools and businesses around the world, with more than 3,657 at the start of the day. Activities ranged from a high-level event in Riyadh to a week-long celebration in South America, celebrations at zoos in Europe and Asia to soil restoration labs for children in Africa, posters dotted transportation hubs to the largest mural in North America, and film screenings to video messages from celebrities and space agency NASA. Tens of millions of people joined the global conversation online, with #WorldEnvironmentDay trending on social media more than blockbuster movies or global politics, amplifying the global rally to restore the lands on which humanity and countless other species depend for survival.
“Today we are pushing the planet to its limits, breaking global temperature records and brewing storms,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres, delivering a special address on climate action at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. “And it is a travesty of climate justice that those least responsible for this crisis are being hit hardest – the poorest people, the most vulnerable countries, indigenous peoples, women and girls,” he added.
Up to 40 percent of the world’s land is already degraded, directly affecting half of humanity, and an estimated 3.2 billion people worldwide are negatively affected by desertification. By 2050, more than three-quarters of the world’s population is expected to be affected by drought.
This year’s World Environment Day aims to support accelerated progress in global efforts, including protecting 30 percent of land and oceans for nature and restoring 30 percent of the Earth’s degraded ecosystems. Countries have committed to restoring one billion hectares of land by 2030, but current trends suggest that 1.5 billion hectares of land will need to be restored to meet the 2030 land degradation neutrality target.
Saudi Arabia announced environmental sustainability goals to address the challenges of drought, desertification and land degradation, including a pledge to plant 50 billion trees across the region through the Saudi Green Initiative and the Middle East Green Initiative. On World Environment Day, the government celebrated land restoration efforts and announced increased support and funding for private and philanthropic organizations working on environmental issues. Additionally, Saudi Arabia confirmed that it is on track to achieve its global land degradation neutrality goal by 2030.
“Significant efforts have been made in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to restore land and curb degradation, including through the Saudi Green Initiative and the Middle East Initiative, while regional cooperation is also being promoted to reduce land degradation, protect vegetation, and enhance biodiversity and food security,” he said. Abdulrahman Abdulmohsen Al Fadhly, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture.
“The Kingdom’s efforts to improve vegetation coverage and combat desertification through the Saudi Green Initiative and national strategy will help the country achieve its goal of land degradation neutrality by 2030,” he added.
Addressing government officials and industry leaders at the Riyadh event, UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen stressed the need for urgent action to realise the goal of the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration by 2030.
“Billions of people around the world are facing food insecurity and severe drought, threatening their livelihoods. That’s why on World Environment Day, we call on people around the world to join the global movement to restore land, build drought resilience and fight desertification,” Andersen said. “Restoration is nature’s solution to address the planet’s triple threat, creating new jobs, reducing poverty and building resilience to extreme weather. Land is life and we must protect it,” she added.
On World Environment Day, six new cities from Africa to Latin America joined UNEP’s Generation Resilient Cities network, representing a metropolitan area of 45 million inhabitants, 2.1 million hectares of land and 600 kilometres of waterways. – We now aim to replicate and scale ecosystem restoration initiatives using nature-based solutions.
World Environment Day 2024 will build momentum for climate action by advancing the 2030 Agenda to put the world on a sustainable and resilient path, joining forces to protect people and planet, and rallying support for critical ecosystem restoration efforts.
Saudi Arabia has partnered with G20 countries and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in the G20 Global Land Initiative, which aims to reduce land degradation by 50 percent by 2040. In December, the country will host the 16th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (COP16), the first time the conference will be held in the region and is widely seen as a pivotal moment in the global effort to end land degradation.
World Environment Day Announcements and Promises
- Maldives President Mohamed Muizz has launched a 5 million tree planting project.
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reaffirmed his government’s commitment to protect 30 percent of Canada’s land and oceans by 2030 and promote the clean energy industry.
- Brazilian President Lula da Silva attended a presentation by Environment Minister Marina Silva outlining her ministry’s work since taking office almost a year and a half ago. The minister also announced new environmental protection measures, including signed decrees.
- Oman plants over 16 million seeds as part of effort to plant 10 million native trees
- Bangladesh aims to increase tree cover to 25 percent of land area by 2030
- Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Christersson and his cabinet have announced the government’s intention to ban bottom trawl fishing in marine protected areas (MPAs) and within Swedish territorial waters (up to 12 nautical miles).
- A new observatory has been launched to track progress on Africa’s “Great Green Wall”.
- North America’s largest outdoor mural has been unveiled to mark World Environment Day.
- Rainforest Trust announced a major milestone: 50 million acres of habitat have been protected to date, an area 40 times the size of Grand Canyon National Park.
- Przewalski’s horses have landed in Kazakhstan, marking a new chapter in biodiversity conservation.
- The Prince Talal International Human Development Prize has announced the winners of its $1 million award to protect life on land.
- Liberian President Joseph Boakai has declared World Environment Day to be celebrated nationwide as a working holiday.
Notes to editors
About World Environment Day
World Environment Day, observed on June 5, is one of the biggest international days dedicated to the environment. Led by UNEP and held annually since 1973, the event has grown into the largest global platform for environmental awareness activities, engaging millions of people around the world in protecting the planet.
About the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
UNEP is the world’s leading environmental organization. We provide leadership and encourage partnerships in protecting the environment by inspiring, informing and supporting countries and their peoples to improve the quality of life for future generations without compromising that of future generations.
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United Nations Environment Programme News and Media Unit