UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Tuesday said that the international community must seize the opportunities presented by the upcoming UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio +20) in order to make the world a more sustainable place.

"Rio+20 is our opportunity to deepen global commitment to sustainable development," Ban said in a message to mark the World Environment Day.

The Rio +20 meeting will run from June 20-22 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, providing an opportunity for high-level government officials, UN agencies, and civil society to take stock of sustainable development progress while planning for future steps forward.

Ban said that in Rio, the international community should agree that measuring wealth and growth solely by gross domestic product (GDP) is "inadequate."

"We should agree that the world needs a set of sustainable development goals that will build on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)," he said. "And we should make progress on some of the building blocks of sustainability -- energy, water, food, cities, oceans, jobs and the empowerment of women."

The secretary-general explained that more and more countries are incorporating sustainable development into their national agendas, and that the UN is working to do so as well.

"In Rio, we must mobilize the partnerships we need to shift the world onto a more sustainable trajectory of growth and development, " he said. "On this World Environment Day, in advance of this historic conference, I urge governments, businesses and all members of society to make the holistic choices that will ensure a sustainable future -- the future we want."

World Environment Day, commemorated on June 5 of each year, is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action.

World Environment Day was established by the UN General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. Another resolution, adopted by the General Assembly the same day, led to the creation of the United Nations Environment Program.

Ban said that this year's theme for World Environmental Day, " Green Economy: Does it include you?" "underscores the need for everyone to play their part in keeping humankind's ecological footprint within planetary boundaries."

"We have to rebut the myth that there is conflict between economic and environmental health," he said. "With smart policies and the right investments, countries can protect their environment, grow their economies, generate decent jobs and accelerate social progress." Enditem