From June 1-June 6 GPA Nepal and partners hosted a week of programs to encourage the conservation and care of the environment.

The week kicked off with a release of fish into the Bagmati River. Kishor Kumar Rajbhandari commented on Facebook, “After the tireless cleaning of Guheshwori section of Bagmati River by our volunteers, time has come to resurrect life in the water of this section.”

Citizens young and old were introduced to various ways to care for the environment. From everyday changes like composting and reducing food waste, to concerted civic efforts like cleaning public spaces like temples, streets and the banks of the Bagmati River and tree planting.

This year’s World Environment Day focused on an anti-food waste and food loss campaign: “Think, Eat, Save”.

“Consumers in rich countries waste almost as much food (222 million tons) as the entire food production of Sub-Saharan Africa (230 Million Tonnes)”The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reports that every year 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted in the world, the same amount produced in the whole of sub-Sahara Africa. Yet, 1 in every 7 people in the world still go to bed hungry, and more than 20,000 children under the age of 5 die daily from hunger.

Small actions can ensure that what earth provides for humanity’s sustenance and development is not wasted.