PLANNING FOR WED 2014

The 2014 World Environment Day was an event that was always on my mind as I consider it to be probably the biggest environmental event in a year. So,as the day was approaching for this year's celebration, I had big plans for the event. Like I have been positing in my previous articles, massive  awareness remains the key to an environment friendly Nigeria, so I had that in mind while making my plans for the big day. I had written an article before where I reported the massive interest of the Anambra state government,Nigeria, in having an environment friendly state. I also reported my plans to visit the Anambra state commissioner for environment to cash in on their interest in this area and partner with them but the visit was been delayed owing to the fact that the government was newly inaugurated and was trying to settle.

But with the World Environment Day approaching,I tried my best to meet the commissioner and know their plans for that day so as to enable me cash in if they will offer a larger audience as they always do in their events.
So, on the 2nd of June 2014,I abandoned everything I was doing,even some of my lectures that day,to visit the commissioner.
As a media man,I had earlier collected his phone number from a colleague in a TV station and when I called to find out if he will be in his office that day,he gave me  a time range. I was in his office before the chosen time and you can imagine my happiness when I was told that he's in his office. I waited in the visitors room for some minutes and then texted him that I am already in his visitors room.

He directed his personal assistant to let me into his office.
I was so glad and went in. I thanked him for granting me the audience and then introduced myself as the TUNZA Eco-Generation Ambassador and told him what Eco-Generation is all about while also giving him my card.
I now asked him the plans of the state government ahead of June 5th and he let me into their plans. Just then,I told him I would love to be part of that plan. He asked how? and I told him that I want to speak at the event. Though they already had two speakers lined up for the event,two university lecturers (one a Professor and the other a Doctor), the commissioner referred me to the event planning unit of his ministry telling them to find a way of incorporating me in  their plans. After speaking with the director of that unit,I was confirmed  as the third speaker at the event,something that young people were hitherto deemed unqualified to do.
I left the office with my head high and I was so grateful to God for making that day a success for me.
And it time to start writing my speech for the event and also to do other preparations.
I still kept in touch with workers of the ministry who helped me get my speech to power point system for a better presentation on the D-day.

I slept consciously on 4th June,2014,knowing that the next day,I will be in front of the cameras and a  huge audience driving home "save the environment message".
Morning came,like every other day, and it was 5th June,2014. The World Environment Day.The event was holding at the Women Development center of Anambra state, a place that is used for big events organized by the state government, and the time was 10:00am.
I arrived the venue in the company of some friends and a reporter from my university radio station,UNIZIK94.1FM, where I am a presenter.

The event,which adopted the theme of the United Nations "Small Island Developing States" started with prayers and  proceeded with the Prof. Ezeonu,from my university, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka,Anambra state,speaking on Waste Management while Mrs. Florence Ikegbunam of the department of environmental management,Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Uli,Anambra state,spoke on costal erosion which has bedevilled the state for long.
The audience was made up of many traditional rulers,Students of the Anambra state school of Environmental Management, students from many secondary schools in the state, workers from the ministry of environment, clerics, some members of the state executive, members of the press and other observers.
After their lectures, a question and answer segment, and a short drama by some staff members of the state ministry of health,I was invited to the stage to deliver my speech. I was supposed to use power point in my presentation but the man in charge of the protector was conspicuously missing as I  called to deliver my speech but I had about 25 copies of the speech which I shared to members of the state executive and most traditional rulers present. 
After observing the protocols,I sought the consebt of the audience to do a bilingual presentation because of the foreign audience that will see the video(I had TUNZA Eco-Generation members and UNEP in mind).
And the full speech is below.

     MY SPEECH DELIVERED ON THE WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY 2014

GLOBAL WARMING:
THE NIGERIAN PERSPECTIVE
SPEECH
 
BY
CHIAGOZIE UDEH
 
ECO-GENERATION AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA
 
 AT THE 2014 WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY CELEBRATION OF THE ANAMBRA STATE   GOVERNMENT.
 
THEME: SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES AND
CLIMATE CHANGE

The Governor, Chief Willie Obiano, his deputy, Dr. Nkem Okeke, the secretary to the state government, HON. Oseloka Obaze, members of the state Exco , colleagues of the press, other protocols duly observed.
 
It is my honour and privilege to stand before you here to speak on this all important occasion. I feel so humbled to have this priceless chance, thank you so much the Hon. commissioner for environment, Chief Evaris Uba for making it possible.



INTRODUCTION
        I am CHIAGOZIE UDEH, the TUNZA Eco-Generation Ambassador to Nigeria. Eco-Generation is an environmental movement powered by the UNEP and SAMSUNG Engineering with its headquarters in Seoul. I am also an O.A.P with UNIZIK94.1FM Awka as well as a student of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
 
        May I begin by commending the efforts of this state government in championing environmental cause. It indeed surprises me that a newly inaugurated state government will take up environment as its priority and to say the truth, if any state in Nigeria were to make the environment ministry one of its major priority, I expected Anambra state to be one of the last states to do that. Even though a lot still needs to be done, I must commend the first steps of the Governor of the state Chief Willie Obiano.
 
        Today is world Environment day and 2014 has been designated by the UN as the "International Year of Small Island Developing States" hence in the light of this, World Environment day 2014 has its theme as ?Small Island Developing States and Climate Change.? UNEP declared its slogan 'Raise your voice, not the sea level'. And that slogan stems from the fact that just a little rise in the sea level will have a devastating effect on the SIDS.
        Owing to the theme of this year's event, my presentation will essentially be on the major cause of climate change which is global warming.

DEFINITION
         Of course Small Island developing states are states lying very low on the earth surface and are hugely at the receiving end of most environmental problems especially climate change. When we talk about small Island states, we are talking about states like Kiribati, Fiji, Belize, Samoa, Barbados amongst others.
        Climate change according to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change "means a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods."
        It is well known that global warming is the major cause of climate change and of which we contribute heavily to.
        Global warming according to EPA (US Environment Protection Agency) is "the recent and ongoing rise in global average temperature near Earth's surface. It is caused mostly by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Global warming is causing climate patterns to change. However, global warming itself represents only one aspect of climate change.? 
        The world environment week had on Monday started in Barbados with a lot of activities which will climax today. I feel for states like Barbados.
        It is indeed hurting that nature could be so unfair to have the small Island states, whose combined annual emission of greenhouse gases is less than one percent of the total global emissions, as the most vulnerable to climate change effects. It can easily pass as the Irony of existence.
        These Islands contribute very little to climate change yet they bear the major weights of its consequences. For instance, in the Caribbean, "a 50-centimeter rise in sea level will result in Grenada losing 60per cent of its beaches. Severe shifts in climate patterns also cause havoc on entire
        livelihoods. Hurricane damage to Dominica has been damaging to its fruit industry, which provides thousands of jobs and produces 30,000 tons of bananas, avocados and other fruits annually". These Islands described as "biodiversity hotspots, containing some of the richest reservoirs of plants and animals on the planet", are heavily endangered. Both its human and natural resources.
        These have made these nations extremely alert to environmental changes in all their government policies but then, they can only do little in this regard, and we have a major stake in this. To help save the Nigerian environment and indeed that of the world especially the SIDS nations.



HOW ARE WE CONTRIBUTING TO GLOBAL WARMING?
        Nigeria is a major contributor to global warming. We engage in massive gas flaring, unimpeded deforestation, unhealthy agricultural practices, ill-management of energy resources amongst others. At best, we contribute infinitesimally to the movement against climate change and this even though it affects us, takes its full toll on low-lying Island nations.

        In Agriculture, practices like bush burning are not healthy for the environment. It feeds the atmosphere with carbon dioxide which is the most abundant greenhouse gas. People involved in timber are also not helping matters, they fell our trees almost freely without caring to replace as much as they have wasted. You may not know understand what it means to the environment when a tree us cut down until you hear this, "according to the college of agriculture and life science, North Carolina University, a tree can absorb as much as 48 pounds or 21.7kg of carbon dioxide per year and can sequester 1ton of carbon dioxide by the time it reaches 40 years old". So, if you fell a tree, you have technically added 21.7kg of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

        Also, MONGABAY.COM in 2005 reported thus of Nigeria "Since 1990, the
        country has lost some 6.1 million hectares or 35.7 percent of its forest cover. Worse, Nigeria's most biodiverse ecosystems—its old-growth forests— are disappearing at an even faster rate. Between 1990 and 2005, the country lost a staggering 79 percent of these forests and since 2000 Nigeria has been losing an average of 11 percent of its primary forests per year—double the rate of the 1990s. These figures give
        Nigeria the dubious distinction of having the highest deforestation rate of natural forest on the planet." I think that tells the whole story of our commitment to this cause.
          Looking at the transport sector, this "contributes 13% of the total global greenhouse gas emission of which carbon dioxide is the largest part". It may also interest you to know that the African continent has just 2% of the world vehicle yet we contribute majorly to the emissions from the transport sector.
         Again, in waste management, we are yet to coordinate our activities in this regard. You will agree with me that most streets in Nigeria are littered with mainly non-biodegradable wastes ranging from sachet water to plastic bags to can drinks and others. We simply don't dispose them properly and when you burn, they release gases that are dangerous to the environment.
       
        What do we then say of gas flaring which is a major cause of global warming. According to Eco-Generation, burning of fossil fuels alone contributes 57% of carbon dioxide emissions, and gas flaring is indeed the chief contributor in this regards. Reports say "Oil and coal each account for 40 percent of global warming emissions from fossil fuels worldwide" and gas flaring was reported to be highest in Nigeria as of 2004.

        Now, the ice-caps are melting nonstop due to an increase in the temperature of the planet occasioned by global warming. The consequence is that they flow into oceans and rivers increasing it volume and flow and is threatening the world especially the SIDS.


HOW CAN WE HELP?
Eco-Generation advise the following:
*  Stop cutting down forests as trees absorb and fix Carbon dioxide naturally.
*   Use natural light during daytime and cut down the use of electricity.
*  Use public transport frequently and prevent carbon emission into the atmosphere.
*  Eat local and seasonal food and prevent carbon emissions through transportation of food from great distances and energy expended on storage respectively.
* Use CFL/LED lamps as they consume less electricity than incandescent bulbs. Compost the biodegradable waste instead of burning.
*  Adjust thermostats switch off fans, lights, Air Conditioners when they are not in use to cut down electricity use.
*   Use cloth bags and reduce the use of plastic bags.
*   Cycle/walk for short distances and cut down use of fossil fuels.


MY RECOMMENDATIONS:
        First, our people need massive orientation on the realities of climate change. They need to understand that they part of the solution. It is not the white man's thing, it is ours also.

        So, I call on the National Orientation Agency to drive this message home.
         Our farmers should be thought on how to compost wastes in their farms and stop the practice of bush burning. When you burn bushes you kill the micro organism species in the land and that does not help your productivity. I suggest that we make use of the traditional rulers in this regard to help pass the message of healthy agricultural practices to their subjects. Of course I am impressed that the state government has commenced its tree planting campaign, you may never know the result of such project until the next decade. Dealers in timber are hereby encouraged to replace as much trees as they cut down.
        In waste management, the keyword for me is recycling. I call on the government, to provide recycling plants at strategic places in the states where people can easily throw in there cans and waterproofs without any stress as is done in Dubai. I also call on all manufacturing companies to devise a means of making it lucrative for the populace to return waste from their products to them. For example, sachet water companies should encourage the public to return their sachets after use to make it easier for recycling and take them off the streets. I suggest that the government should provide special waste bins which will be collecting specific waste for easy recycling. For example you have the one for cans, the one for sachets, the one for plastic bags and so on.
 
        I hope to partner with the state and federal government in establishing Eco-clubs in primary and secondary schools in Nigeria to help build a passionate green generation.
 
        I will also like the government to put in mind the environmental effects of all projects that they will carry out to ensure that a good environment master plan is followed. For example, making provisions for recycling plants in stadia both the already built and yet to be built ones as well as making strong policies that will compel oil and gas company to invest heavily in caring for their host environment.
 
        Finally, I call on manufacturing companies to join the government in this journey in any way they can. They should make more use of recycled materials in their production.
        One of Eco-Generation ambassadors to UAE, Arushi Madan, brought it to the notice of fellow ambassadors across the world the wonderful campaign introduced by coca cola in Dubai to encourage recycling and give low income-earning foreign labour workers more value for money.
        Arushi wrote thus on the campaign "Global soft drink giant Coca-Cola has run a campaign where it installed phone booths in Dubai labour camps to allow low paid foreign workers to make international calls to relatives and friends using Coca-Cola bottle tops as payment.
        The initiative is part of Coca-Cola's "Hello Happiness" global campaign and involved five Coca-Cola branded phone boxes being installed in labour camps across Dubai. Workers who bought Coca-Cola bottles could then use the bottle tops to make a free three minute international phone call". You can watch the video on YouTube via this link  http://www.youtube.com/watch?
        v=zlA9tXYxD8g 
 
        Now isn't that great? I call on coca-cola to extend that campaign to Nigeria as it will have a great effect.
 
        May I conclude by saying that it is high time will stopped being the cause of climate change and become the solution.
 
        We must help save the SIDS, we must contribute to saving mother earth.
        If Barbados, an island with an area of 431square kilometers of land and a population of about 270,000 can champion the movement against climate change, why not Nigeria? With an area of 910,770 square kilometers and a population of close to 200 million, we can make a greater impact.

        But if we decide to fail in this responsibility, then we can gladly say a healthy TUFIAKWA to ourselves. I hope it doesn't happen.
 
THANK YOU!
       



REFERENCES:
 Eco-Generation School kit.pdf- Understanding Climate Change (September 2013) pp. 14 & 17.
 WED_Booklet_2014_EN_Press_2.

pdf
 Arushi Madan.   Tunza.eco-generation.org/ambassadorreport, May, 2014
 INSA Lyon, France
Department of Civil and Environmental
Engineering
Lulea University of Technology Lulea, Sweden.
Gas Flaring Emission Contributes to Global Warming: gas flaring report-final.pdf, March 2007.
UNFCC: ARTICLE 1 https://unfccc.int/essential_background/convention/background/items/2536.php
 MAGNAY.com. Nigeria: Environmental profile, 2005. 
US EPA: Basic Information on Climate Change, March 2014. 
Greenpeace International: Questions and Answers.









After my speech,which lasted slightly shorter than planned due to the late arrival of the governor who had been inspecting environmental projects round the state as part of activities marking the day,people were demanding that I allow them to copy my speech with their flash drives,that made me happy and I quickly obliged them.

A 30 minutes of the excerpts from the video of the event is below. This video does not contain my entire speech as the state video man missed some moments and does not also contain the full event.Though I had to pay to get the video released to me,I am glad to have done so,as it is a sacrifice worth making.
You can watch the video here: 
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B4UauN-C5hTlazA2cmRWUzZZLTg/edit?usp=drive_web




(NB: Please,this article has a "part 2" which I have also posted. I posted them separately because of the different content and to enable me post most of the pictures I took. I encourage you to read the second part too. Thanks.)