As the world celebrates Earth Day, Zimbabwean environmental activists and experts have called for urgent action to protect the country’s natural resources and combat climate change.
In an interview with The Environment, Anna Brazier a climate and sustainable development expert said Earth Day commemoration in Zimbabwe should focus on protecting natural resources.
“I think that in Zimbabwe Earth day commemorations should focus on protecting natural resources. The slogan should be ‘A healthy, resilient environment is our best protection against the impacts of climate change.’
“Every district should hold celebrations in schools, churches and community centres to plan how to conserve the forests, soils, water sources and wildlife in their communities and how to curb land degradation especially by farmers,” said Brazier.
She proposed a number of measures that can be employed to curb environmental abuses in communities.
“Traditional leaders should spearhead these celebrations by making sound commitments to fight environmental abuses by land-users in their communities. These land-users include people practicing unsustainable crop and livestock production, stream bank and wetland cultivators, firewood sellers, brick makers and artisanal miners.
“Positive things communities can do together include water harvesting, gully reclamation, designation of protected areas such as stream banks, wetlands, springs and forests, improved livestock management such as stock quotas and controlled rotation of grazing areas, establishment of community seed banks and community grain storage facilities,” said Brazier.
Theophilus Marevererwa, a climate activist, highlighted the importance of Earth Day as a reminder of the ongoing commitment needed to preserve the planet.
“Earth Day is not just about one day of action, it’s about a lifetime commitment to preserving our planet,” he said.
Environmental researcher, Mellissa Munangatirwa highlighted that Zimbabwe has the knowledge and policies to address environmental challenges.
“What we need now is political will and commitment from our leaders to prioritize environmental conservation,” Munangatirwa said.
Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection.
