#WED2014: World Environment Day Tweetathon
#WED2014: World Environment Day Tweetathon

It's World Environment Day and millions of people, companies and organisations around the world are taking to Twitter to spread the word about going green in order to tackle big challenges like the rising sea levels facing small islands.

You can join them too by tweeting using the hastags #WED2014 or #WorldEnvironmentDay, or pick a a team out of the four United Nations Environment Programme ambassadors and take up a WED Challenge.

There are 38 UN member states and 52 island states in the world that are acutely vulnerable to environmental degradation, climate change, overexploitation of fisheries resources, land-based pollution and natural disasters.

It's not enough for just these countries to go green and practice environmentally friendly practices – every single country in the world is encouraged to get involved to cut carbon emissions, clean up and preserve rainforests, green spaces and the ocean; find renewable and environmentally-friendly sources of energy; recycle and much more.

Join us as we take a look at some of the topics people are most concerned about on Twitter today:

1. Rising Sea Levels

By 2100, it is estimated that the sea levels will rise by up to two metres, meaning that nations such as Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands and Tuvalu would become completely uninhabitable. This problem is caused primarily by climate change and the UNEP has made this a key issue to work on this year:

Raise your voice, not the sea level! Happy #WED2014 #WorldEnvironmentDay: http://t.co/WqWHnNNKY8 via @YouTube

— Stefania Aguzzi (@at_stefania) June 5, 2014

52 small island states-62m people-emit less than 1% of global GHGs, but suffer most from #climatechange #WED2014 http://t.co/lIwMVavQDb

— Sam Gardner (@SamuelJGardner) June 5, 2014

2. Go green and recycle

There are many small ways you can help the environment, by going green, meaning you make an effort to recycle, and also use products that are not toxic and will not damage the environment in landfill or add to carbon emissions depleting the ozone layer:

Its not too late to register for tomorrow's free #WED2014 DIY green cleaning product workshop at @space3ed tomorrow: http://t.co/bNHjErbA54

— City of Perth (@CityofPerth) June 5, 2014

Use less papers, recycle the recyclable and save trees. #WED2014

— Sada Haruna (@H_Sadah) June 5, 2014

Happy #WorldEnvironmentDay! Today we're looking at green printing recycling tips to help you to do your bit http://t.co/IUrFagfyW3 #WED2014

— TonerGiant (@TonerGiant) June 5, 2014

Germany's first package-free supermarket about to open http://t.co/yZ84FRiLoG #Unverpackt #WED2014 pic.twitter.com/tCt172llH3

— Doing Things Differently (@dtdchange) June 5, 2014

3. Decrease wastage of resources

Another way you can help to save the environment would be to stop wasting. Turn off anything using electricity to save energy, one of our most valuable resources. Stop wasting food – a third of food produced is wasted, and we had to sacrifice forests for the fields to house cattle in, and the cattle contribute to CO2 emissions. Not wasting can go a long way to helping the environment:

Every one of us can play our part. We can switch off the lights, leave the car at home. #WED2014 @unfoundation #WolrdEnvironmentDay

— Ishmael Faiz (@isseyfaiz) June 5, 2014

#Lighting an office overnight wastes enough #energy to heat 1000 cups of water for tea.#WED2014

— GRIHA Council (@GRIHACouncil) June 5, 2014

4. Plant more trees

There are lots of projects around the world to increase the number of trees being planted, which can dramatically help to counteract carbon emissions:

#WED2014 #AUSAwithWED More than 150.000 trees are required in order to counteract 500tn of CO2 (the emissions we avoid in 2013 with #Urban)

— Alberto Ortega (@a_ortega_moreno) June 5, 2014

15 years for a tree to grow to maturity and only 20 minutes to cut it down plant tree # 50milliontrees #WED2014

— Hips, Heart, Hustle. (@ValNgugi) June 5, 2014

It's the little things citizens do. That's what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees #50milliontrees #WED2014 #Kenya

— Emily Gumba (@emilygumba1) June 5, 2014

Doomsday is not abt molten lava falling frm the sky.. its about us neglecting our enviroment & us cutting down trees nature is life #WED2014

— Mk (@Mugo_kudzai) June 5, 2014

Plant trees! They provide shade, clean air, mask noise and need much less water than lawns @SOFERInitiative @UNEP #WED2014

— Pep Franklin (@frankkiepep) June 5, 2014

5. Stop polluting

A lot of people are talking today about stopping pollution, which is one of the biggest problems affecting our environment:

MT @gelio crimes against #Environment !#skouries #SyriaChems #EUGreenWeek #WED2014 #EUGreenWeek pic.twitter.com/e4RIqdaPKD

— Κάποιος Ταδόπουλος (@_Wiesenthal_S_) June 5, 2014

Take that #WorldEnvironmentDay - Queensland gov't chooses #WED2014 to "dump" on the #GreatBarrierReef http://t.co/vcB5j2L2mX #SaveTheReef

— Richard McLellan (@RichardMcLellan) June 5, 2014

"I can't come out tonight, I'm washing my hair." http://t.co/4GGbmiECU2 #PoisonedPlanet #WorldEnvironmentDay #WED2014 pic.twitter.com/aHIcKWp5kZ

— Allen & Unwin (@AllenAndUnwin) June 5, 2014