Today sees the United Nations World Environment Day being celebrated across the world. The event has been held on the 5th June each year since 1972. The event is an opportunity to encourage everyone to treat the environment around us more kindly and to realise that it is the responsibility of everyone to make changes to help maintain it, because it isn’t just today it has an impact, but on what we leave future generations.

2014 has been declared as the International Year of Small Island Developing States, and in conjunction with this World Environment Day will be looking to raise awareness of the challenges and the successes of these particular environments.

We have all heard about global warming and the changes to climate, which raise sea levels. This is affected in two ways, with the ice caps melting this is adding more water to the sea, but as global temperatures rise the sea levels rise because warm water expands and so occupies more physical space. And who faces these effects first as flooding and sea surges increase, the small island communities.

So today gives you a chance to get together and get involved in making a greener and cleaner world. Why not get outside today or this weekend and organize a community clean up of that piece of waste ground, or do your bit to reduce the amount of food that simply gets wasted. With the news that we are likely to be charged for plastic bags in shops in England, to bring us in line with the rest of the UK, why not try to stop using plastic bags when going shopping, invest in some reusable bags and do your bit for the environment, as well as saving a few pennies at the same time.

It’s all about making small changes to your habits and it becomes second nature once it is part of your normal routine. So wrap up in your warm and padded jacket depending where in the country you are and get involved.