00:00When we are inspired by nature, we will take climate action for ourselves and for future generations.
00:05And so the whole point is about raising awareness.
00:11From climate change to plastic pollution and biodiversity loss,
00:16the environmental challenges facing our planet are becoming increasingly urgent.
00:21Each year, World Environment Day, led by the United Nations Environment Programme,
00:25brings global attention to the need for action to protect our planet.
00:30Here we are, shining a light with a global campaign on the day when the United Nations Environment Programme was
00:38founded,
00:385th of June, 1972, to say, look, this is not hopeless.
00:44Yes, we are in crisis.
00:46Yes, we have climate.
00:47The climate is sending us, nature and climate is sending us messages, floods, droughts, storms, and so on, fires.
00:54However, the solutions are in our hands and there are things we can do that is not only the right
01:01thing to do,
01:02but it's a good thing to do for us because it will drive jobs, healthier communities, better development, greater resilient
01:09incomes.
01:10And that's what the message here is all about.
01:14World Environment Day has become one of the largest global platforms addressing environmental awareness.
01:20Across the world, governments, scientists, and organizations are highlighting the need for stronger policies, innovation, and international cooperation,
01:29all to highlight the growing dangers of climate change that we are facing today.
01:35The annual event encourages countries and communities to take practical steps to protect ecosystems and reduce environmental damage.
01:43Our mission is continuing to build the bridges, to build the trust between countries,
01:48to build the trust between developing countries and the developed world.
01:52And it is so important now, again, to focus all the world community to environmental issues
02:00because we need to think how to protect our nature.
02:06Scientists warn that without stronger action, environmental pressures could continue to intensify in the coming decades.
02:13In the host country, urban sustainability is advancing.
02:17From EV infrastructure to smart city solutions, Azerbaijan is investing into a greener future.
02:24Azerbaijan chose to act in our forests.
02:29We began to restore what had been lost.
02:31I've been working in this region and in this country for the last 20 years.
02:35I can guarantee you that all the commitments and all the plans, everything materializes.
02:41Unless we gather together, act together, and make changes in the way how we live, how we work, how we
02:49govern,
02:50the future generation might have a very different life than we were able to enjoy.
02:55While environmental challenges remain complex and interconnected,
02:59there does appear to be a better understanding that protecting the planet will require collective action.
03:04However, experts are saying that the transition to a more sustainable future must be accelerated.
03:11Another focus of World Environment Day is how the challenges with climate change is affecting other aspects of life.
03:18We have 520,000 deaths from air pollution every year in our region.
03:25So the climate crisis is not just a health crisis, but it's actually determining the health of the current generations
03:32and future generations.
03:34Events like this here in Baku are helping us speak to our fellow UN agencies and to governments across the
03:42world
03:42to get them ready for what could be a catastrophic event.
03:45We know that the effects of heat most acutely affect those in poor quality housing, living in urban heat islands,
03:55for example.
03:56So we've got to protect those communities, which means adapting our health systems.
04:00Next year, World Environment Day will be hosted in the Republic of Serbia.
04:04But what happens if governments don't work together to combat climate change?
04:09This is not an option.
04:11So we are showing that governments are doing towards positive effects.
04:17We are showing that this is not on our agenda something that is behind us.
04:23It is one of the top three priorities also in Serbia and definitely in Baku.
04:27Baku was the host of COP29.
04:30It was a host of UN Habitat.
04:32So governments are showing that this is not just a talk.
04:36As environmental pressures continue to grow, World Environment Day serves as a reminder
04:42that the health of our planet is closely linked to the future of human society.
04:47We're beginning to understand that choices made today will shape the environmental legacy for generations to come.
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