Today, Friday 5th June, is the annual World Environment Day which is organized by the United Nations Environment Programme team – or UNEP, for short. Their goal is to raise awareness of the detrimental effect that humans are causing to our earth each and every day and what we can all do to aid in protecting the environment.

The slogan for 2015’s campaign is: "Seven Billion Dreams. One Planet. Consume with Care." There are seven billion humans sharing this planet, not just with each other but with all living species. Instead of dreaming about a sustainable future, action must be taken by each and every one of us, to ensure that the dream becomes a reality. With the help of seven billion people, anything is possible.

"Although individual decisions may seem small in the face of global threats and trends, when billions of people join forces in common purpose, we can make a tremendous difference." - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon

It is estimated that if the current rate of consumption and production does not improve by the year 2050, we will need three planets to sustain our ways of living and consumption.

"The well-being of humanity, the environment, and the functioning of the economy, ultimately depend upon the responsible management of the planet’s natural resources. And yet, evidence is building that people are consuming far more natural resources than what the planet can sustainably provide."

Many people do not see the toll that our daily actions are having on our planet and think that the problem is a long way away. Unfortunately, the effects are already clear to see. Global warming has affected India in an awful way, they’ve experienced record breaking heat which has caused the the fifth deadliest heat wave in recorded history – causing the deaths of over 2,300 people.

Additionally, a report in 2014 found that a combination of human overconsumption and overuse of both food and energy, as well as deforestation; has halved the number of animals in the wild in a mere 40 years. Clearly, something has to be done.

Elephants

This campaign has a number of celebrity backers, which is hugely beneficial in raising awareness to as many people as possible. These include Manchester City footballer Yaya Toure and Actor and Environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio, who has said this:

"Overconsumption of food is detrimental to our health and the environment. Land degradation, declining soil fertility, unsustainable water use, overfishing and marine environment degradation are all lessening the ability of the natural resource base to supply food. #WorldEnvironmentDay is less than three weeks away. What's #just1thing that you can do on #WED2015 to fight overconsumption and food waste?"

To get involved, make your pledge and share it on Twitter with @UNEP using #WED2015. Together, we can change the world – for the better!