Geneva, 23 March 2023 (TDI): The World Meteorological Day 2023 ceremony took place at World Meteorological Organization (WMO) headquarters in Geneva.

March, 23 is marked as the official World Meteorological Day with the usual celebrations around the world, and with WMO.

This year’s theme — The Future of Weather, Climate, and Water Across Generations — compels all to live up to responsibilities and ensure that future generations inherit a better tomorrow.

World Meteorological Organization’s Secretary-General, Professor Petteri Taalas, highlighted that our weather and climate, and water cycle know no national or political boundaries. International cooperation has become essential.

Further, he emphasized that philosophy has driven the work of the great meteorological family since 1873 and will guide us in the future. The demand for our expertise and our science has never been higher.

World Meteorological Day 2023 is marked very special because it takes place during the 150th anniversary of WMO’s predecessor, the International Meteorological Organization.

Also read: WMO reports worse climate impacts on LAC

For the past 150 years, National Meteorological and Hydrological Services have collected and standardized data which underpin the weather forecasts we now take for granted.

The history of WMO data has been exchanged with a success story of scientific cooperation to save lives and livelihoods. Additionally, he stated that WMO is renowned as the second oldest United Nations agency.

World Meteorological Congress has agreed on such strategic priorities to promote our vision of a world that has been more resilient to extreme weather, climate, water, and other environmental events.

UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, said, on this World Meteorological Day, humanity faces the difficult truth of climate change which has been making our planet uninhabitable.

Every year of insufficient action to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius drives us closer to the brink, increasing systemic risks and reducing our resilience against climate catastrophe.

Moreover, he mentioned that the countries hurtle past the 1.5-degree limit, and climate change is intensifying heatwaves, droughts, flooding, wildfires, and famines while threatening to submerge low-lying countries and cities and drive more species to extinction.

Finally, he emphasized that there is a need for accelerating the actions to limit temperature rise to 1.5 degrees, through scaled-up mitigation and adaptation measures.

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