PROMOTING ECO-TOURISM Dr. Jassim Taqui DG, Al-bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad April 29, 2023: The following is the UNSG message on International Mother Earth Day: On International Mother Earth Day, we reflect on humanity’s most important relationship — our relationship with the natural world. From the air we breathe to the water we drink to the soil that grows our food – humanity’s health depends on the health of Mother Earth. Yet we seem hell-bent on destruction. Our actions are laying waste on forests, jungles, farmland, wetlands, oceans, coral reefs, rivers, seas, and lakes. Biodiversity is collapsing as one million species teeter on the brink of extinction. We must end these relentless and senseless wars on nature. We have the tools, the knowledge, and the solutions. But we must pick up the pace. We need accelerated climate action with deeper, faster emissions cuts to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We also need massively scaled-up investments in adaptation and resilience, particularly for the most vulnerable countries and communities who have done the least to cause the crisis. Healthy ecosystems — from oceans and rivers to forests and prairies — are also critical in our fight against climate change. Let’s get to work to implement the historic UN biodiversity agreement to ensure that 30 percent of Earth’s land and water is protected by 2030. At every step, governments must lead the way. But corporations, institutions, and civil society also have a vital role. Finally, we must learn from the time-won wisdom, knowledge, and leadership of Indigenous Peoples, whose environmental stewardship stretches back millennia, and who hold many of the solutions to the world’s climate and biodiversity crises. This Earth Day, I urge people everywhere to raise their voices – in your schools, workplaces, faith communities, and on social media platforms – and demand leaders make peace with nature. Let us all do our part to protect our common home for the sake of people and the planet right now, and for the generations to come.