An Environmentalist, Mr Gafar Odubote, has urged Nigerians to adopt sustainability as a culture and the promotion of a circular economy to mitigate climate change effects.
Odubote, a Manager at Let’s Do It Nigeria, an Environmental Non-Governmental Organisation, made the appeal in Lagos on Friday.
Sustainability focused on the avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance.
The expert said that educating Nigerians on the benefit of sustainability was paramount in adopting the concept as a culture, urging the citizenry to reduce waste.|
“To get people involved in sustainability, education about circular economy is the first step. People need to understand their consumption pattern and how it’s affecting the environment.
“We must understand the ‘how’ of sustainability and how it positively affects the environment and the country at large.
“We want to help by advocating and educating people about circular economy and developing sustainable initiatives that companies must adopt to encourage circularity.
“There is a toolkit called the ‘Keep it Clean Plan’ that will help individuals and businesses achieve zero waste.
“As an environmentalist, I am concerned about making people see why they should reduce wastes; buy re-usable materials and also recycle at the last phase,’’ the expert said.
Odubote also urged the government to step up policies and actions to promote sustainability and circular economy in the country.
“The goal is to make people see that re-using non-biodegradable items does not mean you are poor but that you are against wastage.
“To make the sustainability message a mantra among Nigerians, every stakeholder must be involved. Companies must review their business models and transit to a model that supports circular economy.
“The government must come up with concrete and measurable policies, action and steps that targets sustainability and they must enforce it.
“Our school curriculum must include this as a practical subject and we as individuals must manage our consumption and improve our lifestyles to encourage sustainability,” he said.
Odubote, also the President of Junior Chamber International (JCI) Eko Chapter, was awarded the most outstanding member of the JCI World Congress holding in Tallinn, Estonia from Nov. 4 to Nov. 8, 2019.
