Nurture Nature Foundation enjoins public to be ‘ecosystem restorers’ on World Environment Day

On World Environment Day 2025, which was themed ‘Ecosystem restoration – a call to action for clean air, water and land’, Nurture Nature Foundation (NNF) reiterated its firm commitment to restoring natural ecosystems in Ghana and across Africa.

With clean air, safe water and healthy land declared fundamental rights, NNF used the occasion, which was observed on June 5, 2025 to highlight urgent environmental threats and launch a renewed call for collective action.

 The state of our ecosystems

• Air quality crisis

Urban and peri-urban air pollution – driven by burning electronic waste and emissions from aging vehicles – poses a serious health risk. Toxic pollutants such as lead, mercury, dioxins and fine particulate matter (PM) are on the rise.

• Threats to water-bodies

Illegal mining, plastic litter, sewage and industrial discharge have degraded Ghana’s rivers, wetlands and coastal areas. These ecosystems, vital for biodiversity and local economies, are under severe pressure.

• Waste mismanagement

Poor waste systems in cities lead to mixed refuse choking landfills and blocking drains -aggravating flooding and pollution.

• Shrinking forests

Uncontrolled logging, mining and clearing for agriculture have led to rapid deforestation, jeopardising biodiversity and accelerating climate change.

NNF’s key demands for restoration

1. Safeguard Air Quality

• Adopt chamber-burning for ewaste to reduce toxic emissions.
• Phase out over-aged vehicles and promote cleaner transport through incentives.
• Roll out national air-quality monitoring to inform policy and public awareness.

2. Protect water systems

• Enforce regulations against pollution in rivers, lagoons and wetlands.
• Launch community-led clean-ups and restoration projects.
• Invest in wastewater treatment to curb raw effluence in water-bodies.

3. Improve waste management

• Enact and implement national policies mandating household waste segregation.
• Run educational campaigns on recycling and composting across Ghana.
• Partner with private sector actors to build recycling value chains and create economic opportunities from waste.

4. Revive the community clean?up tradition

• Reinstate monthly communal clean-up days with municipal support, enhancing civic pride and flood control.
• Engage youth leaders and traditional authorities in leading these efforts.

5. Halt deforestation and promote reforestation

• Crack down on illegal logging and charcoal production.
• Accelerate community treeplanting campaigns, prioritising native, resilient species.
• Embed environmental education and tree-planting in school curricula.

Partnership and collaboration

NNF emphasises that sustainable environmental restoration demands cooperation. The foundation works closely with partner organisations such as Fill the Gap Africa, Street Children Empowerment Foundation, Obibibroni Peace Centre and Help Foundation Africa.

Together, these groups advance youth empowerment, urban resilience and community education, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals – particularly SDG?17 (Partnerships for the Goals).

A call to action

Peter Asiedu, NNF Executive Director, urged Ghanaians to move beyond words on World Environment Day: “The environment is not an inheritance from our ancestors – it is a loan from our children… Let us act boldly to restore and protect our ecosystems”.

NNF is calling on individuals, institutions and policymakers to: plant trees, pick up litter, say no to illegal logging, join clean-up efforts and promote policy reforms.

By uniting across sectors, NNF believes that real environmental stewardship can be achieved – for today, tomorrow and generations to come.

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