The
REAP Report: World Environment Day--Give Earth a Chance
The
United Nations has declared 5 June of each year as World Environment
Day in an effort to focus attention on the world's need to preserve
and protect the natural environment.
This
year's theme is Give Earth a Chance. After many years and much
public awareness, people, businesses and governments are working
together in an effort to give earth a chance.
To
begin with however, we need to be clear about what we mean by
Giving Earth a Chance. It really isn't the globe-Planet Earth-that
needs to be saved by us. What we need to do is to save ourselves
from ourselves. For if we keep mucking up the Earth we will
join those other now-extinct species who failed to adapt to
an ever changing planet. We will become the modern day dinosaurs.
Much
progress has been made. Population growth is slowing, life expectancy
is rising and the hole in the ozone layer, which protects us
from cancer causing ultraviolet rays, is shrinking.
If
it is true that the past is our heritage, the present our responsibility
and the future our challenge then let's look at some of the
challenges we face.
