Lubricants, which are essential for our industry and vehicles, should have the least possible negative impact on biodiversity loss, pollution, and climate change throughout their life cycle, from source to end use. Lubricant manufacture and consumption must be environmentally friendly. In this sense, the year 2022 gives our industry some duties because the year 2022 is a milestone for our planet.
In September 2015, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly set out on a path to achieve 17 goals and 169 targets by 2030 through “Agenda 2030: UN
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”, committing to eradicate extreme poverty, fighting inequality and injustice, and combating climate change.
The year 2022 is significant on this journey. It marks the 50th anniversary of the UN Declaration on the Human Environment, issued on June 16, 1972, at the end of the UN Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, Sweden, the first worldwide meeting on the environment.
The Stockholm Declaration and Action Plan for the Human Environment paved the way for sustainable development by establishing environment ministries and agencies around the world, triggering a series of global agreements, and, most importantly, linking poverty reduction and environmental protection goals. The concept of “World Environment Day” was codified during this conference, and the “Only One Earth” theme was chosen for the first celebration in 1974. Sweden hosted the Stockholm+50 meeting on June 2-3, 2022, with the cooperation of Kenya. Recalling the 1972 Stockholm Conference, the meeting encouraged us to work for “A Healthy Planet for the Prosperity of All: Our Responsibility, Our Opportunity.”
The UN Environment Program (UNEP) Report “Making Peace with Nature: A scientific blueprint to tackle the climate, biodiversity, and pollution emergencies,” which was released in February 2021, informs us what we need to do under three essential topics. The UNEP State of the Climate: Climate Action Note, issued November 9, 2021, declares a climate emergency for humanity with a code red definition. We are in an unavoidable scenario where the term “worry” is insufficient, and we should be concerned. We must guarantee our future, avoid new pandemics, and find political, economic, and technological answers to climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.
On World Environment Day (June 5, 2021), the theme was biodiversity, commemorating the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and emphasizing the importance of restoring, renewing, and protecting ecosystems. The theme for Environment Day (June 5, 2022), the first celebration under the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which began in 2021, was chosen as “Only One Earth,” referring to the past and present, with the goal of renewing and protecting our planet, in other words, strengthening the call for global collective action for recovery.
Optimal management of the life cycle of lubricants and packaging is critical for our planet’s green and blue recovery. As a result, environmental sustainability management is critical for our enterprises.
For detailed information: https://www.ueil.org/sustainability
