World Environment Day 2013: THINK.EAT.SAVE

World Environment Day(WED) is celebrated each year on June 5 to spread global awareness among the inhabitants of earth regarding mother nature. Each year this day is celebrated with a theme and this year the theme is THINK.EAT.SAVE

According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), every year 1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted. At the same time, 1 in every 7 people in the world go to bed hungry and more than 20,000 children under the age of 5 die daily due to hunger. 

This year's theme encouages reduction of food wastage, which in turn will help save money and minimise the environmental impact of food production. It encourages people to be more aware of the environmental impact of their food choices.

As a world citizen it is the responsibility of every citizen to help maintain the ecological balance.

Here are five things that you can do as a global citizen on World Environment Day:

1) Spread awareness: The major purpose of this year's theme is to start making changes from the household level. As an environment enthusiast, you can spread awareness on a small level by talking to children in your family, or at your office or in your locality. Inform everyone about this year's theme or spread awareness about the environment in general.

2) Build a small farm or garden: We know it's difficult to find space in a metropolitan city, but if you're blessed with one, make and maintain a small farm or garden. Grow fruits, vegetables. Learn about various seeds, plants and manure. Create a part of your garden where you grow edible plants and another where you can grow flowers.

This will help you interact with nature and will also give you an opportunity to do something new. For those who are not blessed with huge spaces, start with a sapling or potato in a bag or a small sprout garden in your windowsill.

3) Travel by public transport: Take public transportation on World Environment Day and vow to take it more often than you do. If you're already a public transport user, take a walk. Introduce the concept of public transport to your family or car-lover friends. Cycle. It's fun and a great way to exercise.

4)  Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Renew, Recycle: If you're not already into this habit, it's a good day of the year to start. These 5R's are magic mantras when it comes to environmental conservation and sustainable usage. The concept is already taught to students at school. The problem is that elders have forgotten about it. Take time on World Environment Day to learn about this concept. There are many things that you can do on a personal level, if you just keep these 5R's in your mind. 

5) Publicise: Did something nice to protect the environment? Talk about it! Show off. Share pictures and posts on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Let people know what you plan to do and do it this World Environment Day. You can use Facebook invites to invite your friends to participate. Use Twitter hashtags like #StayGreen or #WorldEnvDay to spread your message faster. 

You can also involve yourself with various conservation, restoration, or local eco-community projects in your area.

What else can we do? You can purposefully select foods that have less of an environmental impact, such as organic foods that do not use chemicals in the production process. Choosing to buy locally can also mean that foods are not flown halfway across the world and therefore limit emissions.

Stay Healthy Stay Happy