World Oceans Day is on Saturday, June 8th and a chance to celebrate and bring awareness to a part of Mother Earth that covers 71% of our world and holds 97% of all the water on Earth. The concept for World Oceans Day was first proposed by the Canadian Government at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, in 1992. After several years and the coordinated efforts of many organizations and tens of thousands of individuals, a resolution was passed in December 2008, and the United Nations officially began recognizing World Oceans Day on June 8th of every year. This was an important step in turning the effort into a global one. Since then the network of partners worldwide has grown to include approximately 2,000 organizations committed to preserving our oceans and the marine and plant life that call them home.
We will be celebrating the day by spending some time enjoying our local beach and recommitting to being better stewards of our environment. Some changes that we have personally made include: to not use single use plastic bottles and opt instead for stainless steel or multiple use bottles; to use reusable totes or bags when shopping; to not use plastic straws either at home or while out dining; picking up trash when we see it even when it was not ours; recycle/repurpose when possible; and our Save the Plastic Tree promotion. We are also exploring other ways of reducing our use of plastic and impact on the environment and will be sharing with you in future posts what we have found successful.
Help us spread the word and share how you plan to celebrate World Oceans Day this year as well as any changes you have made or plan to make to preserve our oceans and environment. Change starts with each of us and together we can make a difference!