HUMAN WRONGS WATCH

On 27 May, a group of people swam across Lake Geneva to raise awareness of plastic pollution. But this wasn’t just any swimming race.

The press release has some details:

To symbolize this drag on our quality of life, swimmers – including volunteers from UN Environment and the International Olympic Committee – held a race against plastic pollution in one of the largest lakes in Europe, Lake Léman (Lake Geneva). The swimmers dragged balloons symbolizing the weight of plastic waste produced per person in different European countries…

(Spoiler: Bulgaria won, with Ireland finishing second.)

The day also included a major cleanup:

Divers and dozens of volunteers meanwhile recovered and sorted 70 kg of plastic waste from the lake’s bed and shore in Lausanne. The waste included BBQs, mobile phones, a table and a large proportion of plastic. Around 5,500 kg of waste was recovered during a series of clean-ups organized by the Net’Léman initiative. Some 110 tonnes of waste – ranging from fridges and bikes to plastics – have been collected and separated for recycling from Lake Léman since the first such clean-up was held in 2005.

Learn more about what we’re up to in Europe.

Singer and UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador Jack Johnson has shared a message for his fans on World Environment Day.

Join him by signing the Clean Seas pledge.

In the run-up to World Environment Day, the Government of Nigeria has announced ambitious new plans to improve how the country manages its waste.

EnviroNews Nigeria covered the story:

The minister said that the Federal Ministry of Environment, in collaboration with critical stakeholders, had developed a national strategy for the phase-out of plastics, which are non-biodegradable.

According to him, the ministry is also developing a national plastic waste recycling programme, as well as establishing plastic waste recycling plants across the country in partnership with state governments.

“At present, a total of eight plants have already been completed and handed over to the states while 18 others are at various stages of completion.

The Minister also announced that the country’s vice president will attend the World Environment Day celebrations on 5 June.

As the global host of this year’s celebrations, India is going all out for World Environment Day. Here’s a quick look at some of the highlights from last week. (Much more to come later today, of course!)

Students at Tongji University in Shanghai have crafted sculptures out of single-use plastic to call attention to plastic pollution.

The installation, which is being supported by the Shanghai Municipal Environmental Protection Agency, is one of 12 exhibitions across the Asia-Pacific regionthat are calling attention to plastic pollution on World Environment Day.

Estonia’s Minister of the Environment, Mr. Siim Kiisler, who is also the President of the United Nations Environment Assembly, had this message to share on the eve of World Environment Day.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has just announced a major new partnership with UN Environment, with a focus on combatting plastic pollution in the world’s oceans.

Seven Olympic sports – triathlon, sailing, ice hockey, surfing, athletics, golf and rugby – have committed to reduce their plastic footprint, as have a number of national-level Olympic committees and corporate partners.

Here’s a snippet from their press release:

The IOC has already begun reducing waste at the IOC headquarters, as well as at The Olympic Museum, and is working to increase responsible material use at IOC events in collaboration with its suppliers by 2020.

Moving forward, the IOC will provide educational toolkits and workshops to the sports community, in addition to further driving innovative solutions together with its partners. With assistance from Olympic Solidarity funding, coastal clean-ups, campaigns and education programmes have already begun in Oceania, a region of 17 nations that see first-hand the impacts of marine debris in the oceans.

Read the full announcement here.