By Hildah Nsimiire
OPINION
Every April 22, we celebrate Earth Day. This year, the event will be celebrated under the theme ‘Our Power, Our Planet’. According to the official Earth Day website, the theme emphasizes collective action, community mobilization and the role of individuals in defending environmental protections, accelerating the transition to clean energy and ensuring a sustainable future.
In a country like Uganda, Earth Day should be celebrated every day to drive continuous, daily action against environmental degradation, reverse severe deforestation and protect natural ecosystems that make the environment unsafe for us.
Article 39 of the 1995 constitution of the Republic of Uganda guarantees a right to a clean and healthy environment. This right empowers every Ugandan regardless of age, color, size, sex, religion to demand accountability for the very water we drink, the air we breathe and the land that sustain us.
However, we have not yet appreciated the right to a clean and healthy environment because daily, we witness the consequences of our inactions, deforestation, encroachment on the precious wetlands. Today, the earth is facing a plethora of planetary crises, climate disruption, nature and biodiversity loss and pollution that is threatening the well-being and survival of millions of people.
As we join the rest of the world to commemorate Earth Day, we should be reminded that the planet does not need to be saved in the future, we need to act now by appreciating the right to a clean and healthy environment.
On this Earth Day, I urge all citizens to become vigilant guardians of our precious environment by advocating for adoption of renewable energy solutions such as solar energy, geothermal energy and others. We can as well advocate for the use of clean cooking technologies such as electric pressure cookers, air fryers, charcoal pressure cookers at both household and community levels to safe guard the environment.
Young people should embrace and recognize their role as the future stewards of the planet by actively advocating for the use of clean energy in schools and communities where they come from. This will not only increase the uptake but also tackle unemployment that is rampant in the country.
Lastly, I call upon the civil society organizations with the element of protecting the environment to continue becoming the voice of the voiceless environment by advocating for policies that accelerate the transition, from use of fossil fuels to use of clean energy that is environmental friendly.
Our Power, Our Planet
The writer is a Ugandan Environmentalist
