Artigenda
International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict
When: Annually November 6.
The United Nations has arranged for the International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict to be set on 6 November. The official English-language name for this day is International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict. The day has existed since 2001, which is due to UN Resolution A/RES/56/4.
Impact of conflict and war
A lot of attention is paid to the impact of conflict and war on human lives. Rightly so. But one should not forget that our living environment is also affected by conflicts and wars. It is far from always about areas that are inaccessible due to the violence of war. Consider also facilities from nature that are rendered inaccessible, become unusable or even suffer irreparable damage.
Wrong trade
Another downside is that precisely because of conflicts and wars, there is a trade-in of wrong products from nature. As a result, the wrong people earn from this trade.
At the General Assembly on 5 November 2001, the UN decided to adopt resolution A/Res/56/4 creating this day. As is often the case with UN special days: this day was also given a rather long name.
Resolution UNEP/EA.2/RES 15
Another important step was taken in 2016, with Resolution UNEP/EA.2/RES 15. This seeks to ensure that the environment in areas affected by conflicts and wars should automatically be protected. Unfortunately, warring parties worldwide do not (always) adhere to this.
