125,000 'Stand Up' for sustainable future

Dubai: One UAE resident out of ten 'Stood Up' throughout the three-day challenge in the UAE in support of abolishing poverty and working towards a sustainable future.

The Mission Green Earth - Stand Up and Take Action 2008 campaign concluded on Sunday with 125,000 people nationwide taking part in Stand Up sessions, taking the pledge to pursue sustainable living.

Each participant also pledged to remind their government of its commitment to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by formulating sustainable development policies for a greener future and further social responsibility.

The Ministry of Environment and Water held a solidarity meeting before launching the campaign where hundreds of employees vowed to adopt a sustainable lifestyle to save the environment.

Up to 7,000 people from the Al Futtaim group registered for the pledge whilst the Al Faraa group registered more than 15,000 employees. ETA group gathered their 73,000 employees to take part.

In a recorded message at the ceremony, UN Messenger of Peace Princess Haya Bint Al Hussain, wife of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, who is the patron of the campaign, said: "This is about saving and enhancing human lives because we know that those who will be hardest hit by climate change will be those who are already the most vulnerable in our societies.

Responsible citizens

"We want the UAE to benefit from our attention to sustainability but let's also be responsible world citizens because the reality is that while we take life's perks for granted, many in our world are suffering."