We can’t stop breathing, but we can do something about the quality of our air!
June 2019 is National Environment Month, which includes World Environment Day on 5 June. This year the day will be hosted by China with the theme “Air Pollution”.
Did you know that World Environment Day is the biggest, most globally celebrated day for positive environmental action? Every action counts, and when multiplied by a global chorus, becomes exponential in its impact.
World Environment Day is the United Nation's principal vehicle for encouraging awareness and action for the protection of our environment. First held in 1974, it has been a flagship campaign for raising awareness on emerging environmental issues from marine pollution, human overpopulation, and global warming, to sustainable consumption and wildlife crime. World Environment Day has grown to become a global platform for public outreach, with participation from over 143 countries annually.
Over the years citizens worldwide have organised many thousands of events, from neighbourhood clean-ups, to action against wildlife crime, to replanting forests.
As representatives of the chemical industry, we can make a decisive effort to think about how we are not only part of the industry, but also of nature and how intimately we depend on it.
In an industry that can potentially have a devastating effect on the environment we must take responsibility and utilise our power to become agents for change in support of sustainable and equitable development.
CAIA members have proven themselves time and again as responsible citizens in this regard, and we thank you for that.
During Environment Month the South African Government and captains of industry will lead the way by stimulating awareness on environmental issues and challenging all to become agents for change.