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Did you make a New Year’s Resolution for 2005?  And is it broken yet?  How about making a commitment to improve the quality of life of every Swazi citizen, and which will help ensure that our planet is left in good shape for generations to come.

World Environment Day Pledges
In June every year, Yonge Nawe celebrates World Environment Day.  As part of these celebrations we encourage people to make small but significant changes to their daily lifestyle.   A clean, healthy environment means a better quality of life: we all benefit from cleaner air, fresh water and healthier land.  And we all have a responsibility of caring for the environment not only for ourselves but also for future generations.
If you made a pledge last June, how are you getting on with it?  Congratulations if you are still carrying out your pledge.  If you haven’t been able to do anything yet, why not take this opportunity, at the start of a New Year, to start afresh and make a huge difference!

Do a Little, Change a Lot!
Below we suggest things that you can do to help save the environment.  By pledging to carry out just one of them (or more!), you will be doing your bit to reduce environmental degradation, preserve water or reduce the growing problem of waste.  We encourage everyone to make pledges and then carry them out throughout the whole year.  We will certainly make a big difference through our combined efforts to save the environment.  Please contact Yonge Nawe if you would like more information on these pledges and what else you can do.

• I will replace one light bulb in my house with a low energy bulb, and gradually replace all the bulbs over the year, saving myself money and tackling climate change at the same time;
• I will make my workplace greener by observing environmental laws and standards, and helping my colleagues understand the importance of environmental issues;
• I will start using a shopping bag when doing groceries to cut down on plastic bag waste;
• I will turn off the tap when I brush my teeth or shave;
• I will make my business worker-friendly by complying with Occupational Safety, Health and Environmental (OSHE) standards;
• I will throw rubbish in a bin to help reduce the ever-increasing problem of litter on our streets;
• I will stop washing dishes under running water to save water and reduce energy use for heating water unnecessarily;
• I will report any leaking water pipe to the Swaziland Water Services Corporation;
• I will recycle my bottles, cans and scrap metals, plastics and paper (contact Yonge Nawe to find out where to recycle these items);
• I will use a bucket to wash my car;
• I will report pollution that I see, such as burst sewer pipes or spilt oil, to the Swaziland Environmental Authority;
• I will not smoke in public;
• I will plant one tree either in my garden or as part of a community forest.