6 October 2011: The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) announced that it has joined the 7 Billion Actions Campaign, coordinated by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), to encourage individuals, governments, businesses and organizations to take actions to create a more sustainable world for seven billion inhabitants.

The 7 Billion Actions Campaign aims to capitalize on the population milestone – expected to be reached on 31 October 2011 – by promoting global cooperation on health, environmental sustainability, poverty and inequality, and urbanization, among other issues. The Campaign is encouraging people and organizations to submit ideas and commit to creating a fairer, more sustainable society.

Achim Steiner, UNEP Executive Director, linked the Campaign to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), where he said governments would “renew their commitments to meeting precisely these kind of challenges.” He also used the example of the impact of climate on food security to exemplify the environmental challenges to meeting the development needs of seven billion people. UNEP plans to participate in the Campaign by sharing research, reports and news on the critical role of the environment in a world of seven billion, via social networks, the media, UNEP’s Tunza youth network. [UNEP Press Release] [Seven Billion Actions Website]