World Ozone Day, observed every Sept. 16, celebrates decades of hard work to preserve our crucial ozone layer through global cooperation.

Also known as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, World Ozone Day was first celebrated in 1995 to commemorate how the world came together through the Montreal Protocol in 1987.

Essentially, the ozone layer protects the Earth from the harmful Ultraviolet (UV) radiation of the Sun, but it was found that certain commonly used chemicals were "extremely damaging" to the ozone layer, thus depleting it. This led to the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone layer in 1985. By 1987, the Montreal Protocol was signed to control these substances that are harmful to the ozone, with the ultimate goal of "eliminating them completely."

"On this thirty-fifth anniversary, we will remember how the Montreal Protocol ended one of the biggest threats ever to face humanity: the depletion of the ozone layer," the United Nations (UN) noted. "When the world found out that man-made chemicals used in aerosol sprays and cooling were creating a hole in the sky, they came together."

Today, the ozone layer continues to heal and protect us from the UV rays, according to the UN. The move also contributed to the fight against climate change, with estimates of a further 2.5-degree global temperature rise by the year 2100 had the chemicals not been banned.

By 2008, the Montreal Protocol was the "first and only UN environmental agreement to be ratified by every country in the world," thus showing the importance of global cooperation in the quest to protect our planet.

"In the face of a triple planetary crisis–climate change, nature loss and pollution – the Montreal Protocol is one of the best examples we have of the power of multilateralism; how global cooperation can protect life on Earth, which is the theme of this year's World Ozone Day 35th anniversary," Meg Seki, the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Environment Program's (UNEP's) Ozone Secretariat, said.

On this day, let's look at some quotes that may just inspire you to take action for the planet. (Courtesy: Brainy Quote, AZ Quotes and the UN)

  • "I think we learn slowly as a group, but we learn. The ozone layer is still there." -Eden Robinson
  • "The hole in the ozone layer is a kind of skywriting. At first it seemed to spell out our continuing complacency before a witch's brew of deadly perils. But perhaps it really tells of a newfound talent to work together to protect the global environment." -Carl Sagan
  • "Climate change and ozone depletion are two global issues that are different but have many connections. In the ozone depletion case, we managed to work with decision makers effectively so that an international agreement called the Montreal Protocol was achieved that essentially solved the ozone depletion problem." -Mario J. Molina
  • "If you don't know how to fix it, please stop breaking it." -Severn Cullis-Suzuki
  • "The Montreal Protocol and the Kigali Amendment show us that by acting together, anything is possible. So let us act now to slow climate change, feed the world's hungry and protect the planet that we all depend on." -António Guterres
Ozone
Scientists are researching the use of an aerosol to reflect sunlight back into space, cooling the Earth while simultaneously repairing the ozone layer. NASA