The International Day of Zero Waste, observed for the first time on 30 March 2023 - By Sofonie Dala, Angola
First International Day of Zero Waste bolsters actions to address global pollution crisis
Hello from Angola!
Ladies and gentlemen,
Welcome to our sustainable environment!
I'm Sofonie Dala, the founder of this program.
We are happy to celebrate "The International Zero Waste Day" for the first time.
Video on demand -International Day of Zero Waste 2023
The United Nations General Assembly on 14 December 2022 formally recognized the importance of zero-waste initiatives and proclaimed 30 March as observed the International Day of Zero Waste, to be annually beginning in 2023.
The International Day of Zero Waste aims to promote sustainable consumption and production patterns and raise awareness about how zero-waste initiatives contribute to the advancement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
We, as startups, will start promoting environmental awareness campaigns even more strongly in order to educate and help people reduce their carbon footprint on the environment.
Humanity generates an estimated 2.24 billion tons of municipal solid waste annually, of which only 55 per cent is managed in controlled facilities. By 2050, this could rise to 3.88 billion tons per year. The waste sector is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in urban settings and biodiversity loss. Around 931 million tons of food is wasted each year, and up to 37 million tons of plastic waste is expected to enter the ocean annually by 2040.
The International Day of Zero Waste aims to bring these myriad impacts of waste to the world’s attention and encourage global action at all levels to reduce pollution and waste.
Today, climate change is the term scientists use to describe the complex shifts, driven by greenhouse gas concentrations, that are now affecting our planet’s weather and climate systems. Climate change encompasses not only the rising average temperatures we refer to as global warming but also extreme weather events, shifting wildlife populations and habitats, rising seas, and a range of other impacts.
Angola is currently facing the worst drought emergency in the last 38 years as a result of climate change. The effects of the drought include: shortages of food, lack of potable water, cattle dying from disease and malnourished children (among other things).
Southern and central Angola are facing one of the worst climate shocks in recent years, including alternating droughts and floods. Vulnerable populations use untreated wastewater for consumption, such as stagnant and unprotected pond water, where animals drink and defecate, and rural populations seek water that is dangerous to drink, cook and feed their animals.
Angola also has been struggling to manage municipal waste: the capital Luanda alone produces 6,000 tons of solid waste every day, which the city has struggled to manage
How much did you leave on your plate last time you ate? A few scrapings? A couple of rogue chips? Or perhaps even a few mouthfuls you were too stuffed to finish off?
It is worth considering, then, that every time you throw leftovers away, you’re not just binning tomorrow’s lunch – each forkful of food was responsible for greenhouse gas emissions before it even got to your plate. Growing, processing, packaging and transporting the food we eat all contributes to climate change. And then when we throw it away, as it rots it releases yet more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Greenhouse gases have far-ranging environmental and health effects. They cause climate change by trapping heat, and they also contribute to respiratory disease from smog and air pollution. Extreme weather, food supply disruptions, and increased wildfires are other effects of climate change caused by greenhouse gases.
Promoting zero-waste initiatives can help advance all the goals and targets in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including Sustainable Development Goal 11 on making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable and Sustainable Development Goal 12 on ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns.
UN member states, civil society, the private sector, academia, the youth and other stakeholders are invited to raise awareness of all available zero-waste and waste-management initiatives in the hope that we could come together to eliminate the problem entirely.
Cooperation at all levels is crucial in accomplishing this arduous task.
