This year, the World Environment Day (WED) is taking place in Rio de Janeiro under the theme Green Economy: Does it Include You? WED, which was also held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 to coincide with the Rio Earth Summit, is celebrated globally on June 5. The theme was chosen to reflect the urgency of an inclusive Green Economy which in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication is one of the two key overarching issues at Rio+20 which is set to take place from June 20 2012.
UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner was joined by the Brazilian Environment Minister Isabella Teixeira, in unveiling the latest version of the Green Passport initiative aimed at changing the behavior of travelers and tourists within and outside the country. The passports will be given out to participants of this year’s World Environment Day.
The Green Passport initiative provides a physical passport-style document packed with advice and tips on how to make a holiday more sustainable.
Mr Steiner said that tourism, the world’s biggest industry accounting for around 11 per cent of global GDP and some eight per cent of jobs world-wide, held the potential to deliver a sustainable future with the choices made by visitors to a country having positive or negative impacts on the environment and the social fabric of communities.
“It is important to take the message and ideas of sustainable development from the ivory tower of the few and the well-informed to the general public and the ‘masses’ in order to catalyze widespread positive change in Brazil and beyond,” added Ms Texeira.
Find out more about the UN Conference on Sustainable Development 2012 (Rio+20).
