ENVIRONMENTAL DAYS

DATE	ECO - DAYS
14th – 31st January	Animal welfare fortnight
2nd February	World Wetland Day
28th February	National Science Day
21st March	World Forestry Day
22nd March	World Water Day
23rd March	World Metrological Day
24th March	World Tuberculosis Day
4th April	International Day for Mine Awareness & Assistance in Mine Action
7th April	World health Day
18th April	World Heritage Day
22nd April	Earth Day
21st May	World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development
22nd May	International Day for Biological Diversity
31st May	World Anti -Tobacco Day
5th June	World Environment Day
8th June	World Ocean Day
17th June	World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought
1st – 7th July	Vanamahostvam Day
11th July	World Population Day
9th August	International Day of the World’s Indigenous People
16th September	International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer
28th September	Green Consumer Day
1st – 7th October	World wild life week
4th October	World Animal Welfare Day
First Monday of October	World Habitat Day
13th  October	International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction
16th October	World Food Day
2nd December	Bhopal Tragedy Day
5th December	International Volunteer Day
10th December	Human Rights Day

 

JANUARY
Animal Welfare Fortnight:
Animal Welfare Fortnight is celebrated across India from Jan 14 to 31 to generate awareness about animal protection laws. The first Animal Welfare Fortnight was started in 1964 by Late Mrs.Rukmini Devi Arundale, the founder and chairperson of Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI).
http://eksparsh.wordpress.com/2010/01/15/animal-welfare-fortnight-2010/

 

FEBRUARY
World Wetland Day:
Every year, February 2nd is celebrated as the World Wetlands Day.  It marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Each year since 1997, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and groups of citizens at all levels of the community have taken advantage of the opportunity to undertake actions aimed at raising public awareness of wetland values and benefits in general and the Ramsar Convention in particular.
http://www.ramsar.org/cda/en/ramsar-activities-wwds/main/ramsar/1-63-78_4000_0__

National Science Day:
February 28, is Science Day. On that day in 1928, Sir C.V. Raman announced the discovery of the Raman Effect. For this, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930. The Raman Effect led to the growth of a new discipline, Raman Spectroscopy, which has now become a powerful tool for a wide range of scientific investigations and industrial applications. 
http://www.daysthatspeaks.com/india/science.html

 

MARCH
World Forestry Day:
Every year March 21 is distinguished as World Forestry Day. World Forestry Day has been celebrated around the world to ring a bell among the society about the importance of forests and the scores of benefits which are gained from them. The concept of celebrating a day every year as World Forestry Day originated at the 23rd General Assembly of the European Confederation of Agriculture in 1971. The event also venerates the contribution of the forests.
http://festivalsofindia.in/id/World_Forestry_Day/

World Day for Water:
The international observance of World Water Day is an initiative that grew out of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro. The United Nations General Assembly designated 22 March of each year as the World Day for Water by adopting a resolution.This world day for water was to be observed starting in 1993, in conformity with the recommendations of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development contained in chapter 18 (Fresh Water Resources) of Agenda 21. Every year on March 22, the UN conducts seminars/conferences and camps at various levels in various countries to create awareness about the paucity of water; various techniques about saving and using water judiciously are also taught and demonstrated.
http://www.worldwaterday.org/page/135

World Meteorological Day:
Each year, on 23 March, the World Meteorological Organization, its 189 Members and the worldwide meteorological community celebrate World Meteorological Day around a chosen theme. This day commemorates the entry into force, on that date in 1950, of the WMO Convention creating the Organization. Subsequently, in 1951, WMO was designated a specialized agency of the United Nations System.
http://www.wmo.int/worldmetday/

World Tuberculosis Day:
World Tuberculosis Day, held annually on 24 March, commemorates the date in 1882 when Dr Robert Koch presented his discovery of the TB bacillus to a group of doctors in Berlin. This year, World TB Day will focus on the efforts of frontline TB care providers and their crucial role in stopping TB.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/events/2005/tbday/en/index.html

 

APRIL
International Day for Mine Awareness & Assistance in Mine Action:
On 8 December 2005, the General Assembly declared that 4 April of each year shall be officially proclaimed and observed as the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action (A/RES/60/97). It called to foster the establishment and development of national mine-action capacities in countries where mines and explosive remnants of war constitute a serious threat to the safety, health and lives of the civilian population, or an impediment to social and economic development at the national and local levels.
http://www.un.org/en/events/mineawarenessday/

World Health day:
World Health Day is celebrated every year on 7 April, under the sponsorship of the World Health Organization (WHO). In 1948, the World Health Organization held the First World Health Assembly. The Assembly decided to celebrate 7th April of each year, with effect from 1950, as the World Health Day. The World Health Day is celebrated to create “awareness of a specific health theme to highlight a priority area of concern for the World Health Organization (WHO)”. Activities - related to that particular theme and the resources provided - continue beyond 7 April, that is, the designated day for celebrating the World Health Day.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Health_Day

World Heritage day:
The International Day for Monuments and Sites (informally known as the World Heritage Day) was created on 18th April, 1982, by ICOMOS and later approved at the 22nd UNESCO General Conference in 1983. This special day offers an opportunity to raise public’s awareness concerning the diversity of the world’s heritage and the efforts that are required to protect and conserve it, as well as to draw attention to its vulnerability.
http://www.gdrc.org/doyourbit/18_4-heritage.html

Earth Day:
Earth Day -- April 22 -- each year marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970. The first official observance of Earth Day was on April 22, 1970, in the United States. On that day, 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, proposed the first nationwide environmental protest "to shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda.”
http://www.earthday.net/node/77

 

MAY
World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development:
"Far from separating us, cultural diversity is a collective strength, which should benefit the entire world. In this sense, it should be recognized and affirmed as a 'Common Heritage' of Humanity. " - UNESCO, Lead UN Agency for the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development. Further to the adoption of UNESCO's Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity in November 2001, the General Assembly of the United Nations has proclaimed 21 May, 2004 as World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development.
http://www.gdrc.org/doyourbit/21_5-doyourbit.html

International Day for Biological Diversity:
The United Nations proclaimed May 22 the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. When first created by the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly in late 1993, 29 December (the date of entry into force of the Convention of Biological Diversity), was designated The International Day for Biological Diversity. In December 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted 22 May as IDB, to commemorate the adoption of the text of the Convention on 22 May 1992 by the Nairobi Final Act of the Conference for the Adoption of the Agreed Text of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
http://www.cbd.int/idb/

World Anti -Tobacco Day:
World No Tobacco Day is observed around the world every year on May 31. It is meant to encourage a 24-hour period of abstinence from all forms of tobacco consumption across the globe. The day is further intended to draw global attention to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use and to negative health effects, which currently lead to deaths worldwide annually. The member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) created World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) in 1987. In the past twenty years, the day has been met with both enthusiasm and resistance across the globe from governments, public health organizations, smokers, growers, and the tobacco industry.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_No_Tobacco_Day

 

JUNE
World Environment Day:
World Environment Day (WED) was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972. It is a day when people focus on the environment and it is celebrated in over 100 countries. World Environment Day was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), also created in 1972, uses WED to stimulate awareness of the environment and enhance political attention and public action. World Environment Day is created to promote environmental issues to become active agents of sustainable and equitable development.
http://www.unep.org/wed/2008/english/about_wed_2008/index.asp

World Ocean Day
June 8 is the annual World Ocean Day created in 1992 at the UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, and was officially confirmed by the United Nations in 2009. Organizations and individuals from around the world come together on this day to celebrate the oceans, reflect on their importance in our lives, and take time to do something good for our blue planet.
http://www.gdrc.org/doyourbit/8_6-doyourbit.html

World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought:
Celebrated world-wide, June 17 marks the anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. This is part of the UN campaign to tackle global environmental deterioration in particular by combating the degradation of dry lands. This year's theme highlights the social dimensions of desertification: migration and poverty. http://www.gdrc.org/doyourbit/17_6-doyourbit.html

 

JULY
Vanamahostvam day:
Van Mahotsava is celebrated throughout the country in the first week (1st to 7th) of July every year. The first ever national awakening to the necessity of planting trees and attempts at tree rehabilitation on a national scale, came in July 1947, with a successful tree plantation drive in Delhi. The main objective of celebrating tree plantation week was to focus people's attention on the national importance of planting trees and to make them tree-conscious. This objective was fulfilled to great extent by the first plantation drive.
http://www.zeelearn.com/school/schools/greenearth/vanmaho.html

World Population Day
World Population Day was established by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989 as a way to focus attention on the urgency and importance of population issues. It was an outgrowth of the interest generated by the Day of Five Billion, which was observed on 11 July 1987.Each year UNFPA selects a different theme to rally around. People around the world observe World Population Day in different ways. Many UNFPA Country Offices and other institutions mark the day with celebrations, poster or essay contests, sports events concerts or other activities to bring attention to population issues.
http://www.unfpa.org/public/site/global/lang/en/wpd

 

AUGUST
International Day of the World’s Indigenous People:
By resolution 49/214 of 23 December 1994, the General Assembly decided to celebrate the International Day of the World's Indigenous People on 9 August every year during the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People. In 2004 the Assembly proclaimed a Second International Decade by resolution 59/174. The goal of this Decade is to further strengthen international cooperation for the solution of problems faced by indigenous people in such areas as culture, education, health, human rights, the environment, and social and economic development.
http://www.un.org/depts/dhl/indigenous/

 

SEPTEMBER
International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer:
On 19 December 1994, the United Nations General Assemblyproclaimed 16 September the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, commemorating the date, in 1987, on which the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer was signed. States are invited to devote the Day each year to promote, at the national level, activities in accordance with the objectives of the Montreal Protocol and its amendments.
http://www.unep.fr/ozonaction/events/ozoneday/index.htm

Green Consumer Day:
September 28 is celebrated as Green Consumer Day. The problems of consumerism and its impact on the environment is an area of major concern in today’s world. Awareness building on the importance of recycling-reusing-reducing should be taken up seriously.

 

OCTOBER
World wild life week:
To raise awareness towards conservation of wildlife and prevent extinction of endangered species,October 1 to 7 is observed as the World Wildlife Week. The week was marked well across India and wildlife groups and organizations rededicated themselves to the cause of saving our wildlife.

World Animal Welfare Day:
World Animal Day was started in 1931 at a convention of ecologists in Florence as a way of highlighting the plight of endangered species. Since then it has grown to encompass all kinds of animal life and is widely celebrated in countries throughout the world. October 4 was chosen as World Animal Day as it is the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals.
http://www.worldanimalday.org.uk/about.asp

World Habitat Day:

The United Nations has designated the first Monday of October every year as World Habitat Day. The idea is to reflect on the state of our towns and cities and the basic right of all to adequate shelter. It is also intended to remind the world of its collective responsibility for the future of the human habitat.
http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=6598&catid=588&typeid=24&subMenuId=0

International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction:
By resolution 44/236 (22 December 1989), the General Assembly designated the second Wednesday of October International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction. The International Day was to be observed annually during the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, 1990-1999.  By resolution 64/200 of 21 December 2009 the General Assembly decided to designate 13 October as the date to commemorate the Day and to change the Day's name to International Day for Disaster Reduction.
http://www.un.org/en/events/disasterreductionday/

World Food Day:
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations celebrates World Food Day each year on 16 October, the day on which the Organization was founded in 1945.
The objectives of World Food Day are to:

• encourage attention to agricultural food production and to stimulate national, bilateral, multilateral and non-governmental efforts to this end;

• encourage economic and technical cooperation among developing countries;

• encourage the participation of rural people, particularly women and the least privileged categories, in decisions and activities influencing their living conditions;

• heighten public awareness of the problem of hunger in the world;

• promote the transfer of technologies to the developing world; and

• strengthen international and national solidarity in the struggle against hunger, malnutrition and poverty and draw attention to achievements in food and agricultural development.

http://www.fao.org/getinvolved/worldfoodday/worldfoodday-about/en/

 

DECEMBER

Bhopal Tragedy Day:
December 2, Bhopal Tragedy Day is marked as the anniversary of India’s worst ever industrial disasters. In the early hours of December 3, 1984 in the city of Bhopal there was an accidental release of Methyl Isocyanate (MIC) from a chemical plant located in the heart of the city. Thousands of people were killed and many more injured and crippled by the effect of this deadly chemical. This death and devastation remains unparallel in industrial history.

International Volunteer Day:
The International Volunteer Day for Economic and Social Development (IVD) was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly through Resolution A/RES/40/212 on 17 December 1985.  Since then, governments, the UN system and civil society organizations have successfully joined volunteers around the world to celebrate the Day on 5 December.
http://www.gdrc.org/doyourbit/5_12-volunteers-day.html

Human Rights Day:
In 1950, all States and interested organizations were invited by the General Assembly to observe 10 December as Human Rights Day (resolution 423(V)). The Day marks the anniversary of the Assembly's adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. Over the years, a whole network of human rights instruments and mechanisms has been developed to ensure the primacy of human rights and to confront human rights violations wherever they occur.
http://www.un.org/depts/dhl/humanrights/

Important Days