Tehran: Vice President and Head of Iran’s Department of Environment Sheena Ansari has called for safeguarding the environment amid ongoing wars across the globe as part of efforts to ensure lasting peace, arguing that conflicts are destroying nature and its ability to regenerate.

According to Islamic Republic News Agency, Ansari’s remarks were delivered in a speech read out at an international seminar titled ‘Shadow of War on People and Nature in the Region’ held in Tehran. The event marked the International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict, observed annually on November 6. The Iranian official was unable to attend the seminar in person as she was in northern Iran, where wildfires have been raging in the city of Chalus over the past week.

In her speech, Ansari emphasized the integral connection between the environment and sustainable peace, stating that “the future of peace and the future of humanity depend on the future of the environment.” She urged policymakers, researchers, and specialists to prioritize the protection of the environment, which she described as an “invaluable and irreplaceable asset,” to prevent it from becoming a silent victim of wars.

Ansari highlighted the extensive environmental damages caused by military actions, citing the military aggressions of the Zionist regime in Gaza, which have resulted in widespread environmental crises, including contamination of water and soil resources and severe damage to the region’s ecosystem. Similarly, she noted that recent conflicts have led to the burning of approximately 20,000 hectares of forests and rangelands in Iran, releasing significant amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

The Environmental Protection Organization has initiated several programs to address these challenges, including the protection of water resources, prevention of toxic leaks, establishment of mechanisms for environmental crisis management, ecological restoration, and scientific and legal documentation of war damages. These measures aim to elevate the Organization’s role from a supervisory body to a security-environmental actor in national and regional discourse.

Ansari concluded her speech by reiterating the necessity of a healthy environment for achieving true peace, stating, “Peace is not merely the absence of war; peace is the presence of a healthy environment, a healthy society, and healthy human beings.”