World Environment Day, held annually on 5 June, brings together millions of people from across the globe, engaging us all in the effort to protect and restore the Earth.

This year’s World Environment Day campaign focuses on land restoration, desertification and drought resilience under the slogan “Our land. Our future. We are #GenerationRestoration.”  

World Environment Day puts a global spotlight on the pressing environmental challenges of our times. This UN international day has become the largest global platform for environmental outreach, with millions of people from across the world coming together to protect the planet.

Celebrating Environmental Action since 1973

A global platform for inspiring positive change for the environment, World Environment Day will involve people from more than 150 countries participating in a range of special events. Since its inception in 1973, World Environment Day has grown to become a day that celebrates environmental action and the power of governments, businesses and individuals to create a more sustainable world.

All over the world, ecosystems are threatened - we are part of a generation that is the first to witness the devastating impacts of environmental degradation. If we take this opportunity to drive successful land restoration, we can be the generation that finally makes peace with the land.

United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

There has never been a more urgent need to revive damaged ecosystems than now, which is why the UN declared 2021-2030 the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.

Ecosystems support all life on Earth. The healthier our ecosystems are, the healthier the planet - and its people. The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration aims to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems on every continent and in every ocean. It can help to end poverty, combat climate change and prevent a mass extinction.

The importance of healthy soil

We're thrilled that the importance of healthy soil will be highlighted this World Environment Day. 90 per cent of our food production depends on soil, which also helps to regulate water flow, filter pollutants and support plants and animals. Healthy soils store significant amounts of carbon and play a crucial role as a natural water filter, purifying and storing water. The United Nations World Soil Day in December also aims to highlight the important relationship between soil and water for achieving sustainable and resilient food systems.

Drought and desertification are threatening essential ecosystems across the planet, including freshwater ecosystems and soil, the connective tissue that makes all life on Earth possible.

Want to know the hard and fast facts about soil?

• Every five seconds, the equivalent of one football pitch of soil is eroded. Yet, it takes 1,000 years to generate 3 centimetres of topsoil.
• Every year more than 24 billion tonnes of priceless topsoil are washed or blown away worldwide, as the land is overcultivated and overgrazed and trees and forests are cut down.
• The world will need to raise its food production by 60–70 per cent to feed a projected human population of 9 billion by 2050 even as the current agricultural expansion continues to threaten forests and biodiversity.
• Close to 75 per cent of the world’s fruit and seed crops depend, at least in part, on pollinators like bees. Pollinators contribute to 35 per cent of the world’s total crop production, pollinating 87 of 115 leading food crops worldwide.
• Despite their importance, pollinators are in serious decline, primarily due to intensive agricultural practices, pesticide use, invasive species, diseases and climate change.
• Globally, at least 2 billion people depend on the agriculture sector for their livelihoods, particularly poor and rural populations.

Soil is so much more than *DIRT*!