Earth Day 2021: Do you know the world could run out of rain forests in 2100, food in 2050, fish in 2048, and water in 2040? The way the World is consuming, we would soon need two planets to satisfy our needs.
Over consumerism is creating havoc for the environment and natural resources. The growing population and their rising demands have resulted in depletion of natural resources, increased carbon dioxide emissions, pollution, climate change, and extinction of other living beings, etc. Let us take a look at Earth Day 2021 theme and significance. The entire ecosystem is in a state of imbalance which is resulting in an increased number of natural calamities like wildfires, droughts, and floods. Earth is the only source of survival of all living beings of which human beings constitute only 0.01 percent. Yet, since the dawn of civilization, humanity has caused the loss of 83 percent of all wild animals. Half of all plants and have already used up more than a third of natural resources.
“We, as consumers have all the power and the right to demand what we want and how we want. All we need to do is raise our voice, not one, or two or three, but all of us need to realize the severity of the problem which has been caused primarily due to our consuming behavior. Today, the oceans are filled with plastics which are the source of our drinking water and home to all the sea creatures, the land where we live along with other living beings is filled with waste, the air which we breathe to live is poisonous. All this at what cost and why? The speed at which consumerism is growing globally, we will soon require resources of almost two planets to fill the demand”, says Poonam K Malhotra, Editor-in-Chief, Conscious Carma, a global magazine focusing on the environment and sustainability.
“Plastic is so pervasive because it is durable, cheap, and versatile – making it responsible for many critical advancements. But as a single-use material, years of indiscriminate use have created islands of toxic waste around us. A majority of this comes from the packaging of our daily-use products, so reducing that can help in a big way” says Gauri Gupta, Founder, Arani Ecosteps, a startup creating plastic-free essentials.
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“We all know the dangers that plastics pose. But very few of us are aware of the dangers of throwing our kitchen waste into landfills. While we might think kitchen waste is biodegradable and hence should not be a problem, did you know organic waste dumped in a landfill continues to produce CO2 and methane (aka global warming) for approximately 5-7 years? The debris will continue to pollute the air for at least 50 more years! Composting our own kitchen waste is the simplest step we can all take to begin to manage the tremendous waste management problem our country faces”, says Sujatha Krishnamurthy, Co-Founder, Ekobarn, a startup in providing innovative and fuss-free waste management solutions.
“April 22, 2021, will mark the 51st anniversary of Earth Day and the theme this year is ‘Restore Our Earth.’ We at EARTHDAY.ORG aims to inspire efforts to regrow green cover, rejuvenate aquifers, restore soil, refresh air, reduce and manage waste, encourage a switch to clean and green energies, and build environmental stewardship among all those who inhabit our planet. We believe in growing stewardship for the environment based on knowledge or climate literacy that will contribute to helping return nature to its pristine form”, says Debapriya Dutt, Senior Manager Outreach – India, EARTHDAY.ORG.
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