World Nature Conservation Day 2022: Simple Ways To Contribute, Inspiring Quotes

World Nature Conservation Day, observed every July 28, highlights the importance of caring for our planet and the creatures living on it.

Conservation entails caring for all of Earth's resources, from plants and animals to minerals, water and air. As explained by National Geographic, the goal of conservation is to use nature sustainably and ensure that they persist for future generations.

"Conservation means the wise use of the earth and its resources for the lasting good of men," said Gifford Pinchot who was known as the father of American conservation.

Unfortunately, humans have been consuming the Earth's natural resources at an unsustainable rate, which has greatly affected biodiversity.

"The main factors driving biodiversity loss include habitat destruction, climate change, invasive species, overexploitation, and pollution," Nat Geo noted.

World Nature Conservation Day is observed to highlight the importance of conserving all the Earth's natural resources. Although it may seem a daunting task, there are actually a few simple things that we can do everyday to do our part in keeping our planet healthy.

For instance, with concerns about the world's dwindling water resources, we can do our part by simply turning off the tap when not in use, or even making small changes to lessen our usage. Using rainwater for irrigation and shortening shower time are just some of the small things we can do to contribute.

Reducing, reusing and recycling are still among the simplest things we can do to help reduce our waste, whether it's e-waste from our many electronic devices or the plastics we use. People can also look for simple ways to reduce their energy consumption by carpooling with co-workers instead of using separate vehicles, or making sure to shut of electricity when it's not in use.

Those who have extra time may volunteer for efforts such as community clean-up drives, or perhaps in conservation groups, zoos or aquariums.

People who have a bit of space in their backyards may even make it more "wildlife friendly" by planting native species to help provide resources for the wild animals. Avoiding wasteful and harmful products such as chemical pest control may also help.

On this day, let's look at some quotes about conservation that may just encourage you to take action. (Courtesy: Good Reads, Kidadl and Brainy Quote)

• "Conservation is a state of harmony between men and land." -Aldo Leopold
• "Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed." -Mahatma Gandhi
• "To waste, to destroy our natural resources, to skin and exhaust the land instead of using it so as to increase its usefulness, will result in undermining in the days of our children the very prosperity which we ought by right to hand down to them amplified and developed." -Theodore Roosevelt
• "Water and air, the two essential fluids on which all life depends, have become global garbage cans." -Jacques-Yves Cousteau
• "I want my children and my grandchildren to live in a world with clean air, pure drinking water, and an abundance of wildlife, so I've chosen to dedicate my life to wildlife conservation so I can make the world just a little bit better." -Bindi Irwin
• "What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another." -Chris Maser
• "The Earth will not continue to offer its harvest, except with faithful stewardship. We cannot say we love the land and then take steps to destroy it for use by future generations." -John Paul II
• "A true conservationist is a man who knows that the world is not given by his fathers, but borrowed from his children." -John James Audubon
• "I really wonder what gives us the right to wreck this poor planet of ours." -Kurt Vonnegut
• "Conservation is humanity caring for the future." -Nancy Newhall
• "The question is, are we happy to suppose that our grandchildren may never be able to see an elephant except in a picture book?" Sir David Attenborough