Ethiopia is probably the only country in the world that follows the Julian Calendar.based on this calendar, the country celebrates its new year on September 11, 2016.  According to the Julian calendar, Sep 11, 2016 will be 01/01/2009. 

Millions of Ethiopians celebrate the New Year by cooking food and engaging in various religious and cultural activities that often involve burning a large amount of wood.  The air during this season is thick with smoke and other pollutants that are caused by the burning wood.

The smoke arising from the burning wood is hazardous to human health and certainly bad for the environment. Millions of trees will be cut in order to supply the growing wood market and none is being planted to replace them.

Hence, it is important for Ethiopians to change their method of celebration and cooking during this holiday season. It is important to switch to electricity and other renewable sources for cooking food.

Awareness must be created among the population by the government and other stake holders on the importance of preserving forests and switching to renewable sources. Burning woods for the sake of holiday must be labeled as a bad practice that must be avoided in order to save the environment and breath clean air. 

As the 17^th Eco-generation regional Ambassador, I will be advocating on this topic in the coming weeks.