TEHRAN - Every year on April 22, Earth Day reminds us of the power we have to protect our planet and in 2026, that message feels more relevant than ever.

The official Earth Day 2026 theme is "Our Power, Our Planet." The theme highlights a simple but powerful idea: meaningful environmental change doesn't rely on governments alone; it's driven by the everyday actions of people around the world.

Rather than focusing on a single issue, the 2026 campaign emphasizes collective action, encouraging communities, schools, businesses and individuals to take practical steps to protect the environment where they live.

Bitter and contradictory reality

However, this year, the concept of this day is tied to a bitter and contradictory reality in Iran. While the world seeks unity and solidarity to protect its planet, the massive and brutal military invasion of the United States and the Zionist regime against the country has not only endangered the lives of thousands of people, but has also inflicted the deepest and most toxic wounds on the region's environment.

The aggression on Iran is the exact opposite of Earth Day goals. This brutal attack clearly proves how war contradicts any peaceful coexistence with nature and the environment.

This inhumane act represents a serious threat to the lives of innocent people and civilians who, in addition to severe mental and emotional trauma, must endure the dangerous environmental consequences of this unjust imposed war, Shina Ansari, the head of the Department of Environment, has said.

These two warmongering regimes, of course, have a long history of using environmentally destructive methods in the region and the world. The use of Agent Orange by the United States in the war with Vietnam, which destroyed the country's rainforests, marked one of the most significant environmental disasters in the history of the world, she highlighted.

An initial research analysis by Queen Mary University of London, in collaboration with the Climate and Community Institute London and Lancaster University, found that in just the first 14 days of the war, approximately 5–5.6 million tons of CO2 equivalent were released into the atmosphere, roughly equal to Iceland’s total annual emissions or the output of 1.1 million gasoline cars.

The aggression violates both the Geneva Protocols and the Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques (ENMOD). Long-term consequences include air pollution, acid rain, public health threats, and regional crises affecting water and electricity supplies.

ENMOD, adopted in 1976, bans the use of environmental modification techniques as a tool of warfare and prohibits any action that could cause “widespread, long-lasting, or severe damage to the natural environment,” emphasizing state responsibility.

Protocol I of the Geneva Conventions, an amendment to the original conventions, includes Articles 35 and 55, which obligate countries to protect the environment during armed conflicts. Additionally, the First and Second Additional Protocols of the 1977 Geneva Conventions emphasize environmental protection and civilian safety during war. 

Article 55 of the First Protocol specifically prohibits actions that could lead to “widespread, long-term, and severe damage to the natural environment.” These protocols provide an initial legal framework for assessing environmental damage in wartime, though enforcement has always been challenging.

Without a doubt, the US-Israeli military invasion of Iran is also considered a war crime and a clear crime against the environment. In the face of this disaster, international organizations must examine its legal and moral dimensions and prosecute the main perpetrators, because many of the environmental effects of the war and the process of cleaning up and returning nature to its original state will be a very long, costly, and sometimes impossible, and may remain in the region for decades.

Nature is suffering

What began as a grassroots environmental protest in 1970 has grown into a global movement uniting more than a billion people worldwide. Earth Day serves as a reminder that small, meaningful actions taken by individuals and communities can create a big impact.

Mother Earth is clearly urging a call to action. Nature is suffering. Oceans are being filled with plastic, turning more acidic. Extreme heat, wildfires and floods, have affected millions of people.

Climate change, man-made changes to nature as well as crimes that disrupt biodiversity, such as deforestation, land-use change, intensified agriculture and livestock production or the growing illegal wildlife trade, can accelerate the speed of destruction of the planet.

That is why we need to recover our ecosystems. Ecosystems support all life on Earth. The healthier our ecosystems are, the healthier the planet - and its people. Restoring our damaged ecosystems will help to end poverty, combat climate change and prevent mass extinction. But we will only succeed if everyone plays a part.

For this International Mother Earth Day, let's remind ourselves - more than ever - that we need a shift to a more sustainable economy that works for both people and the planet. Let’s promote harmony with nature and the Earth. Join the global movement to restore our world!