Every year, on 23 March, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), its 188 Members, as well as the worldwide meteorological communities, celebrate World Meteorological Day. This Day commemorates the entry into force, in 1950, of the Convention that created this specialized agency of the United Nations System, after the meeting of Meteorological Services Directors in September 1949. The International Meteorological Organization is the forerunner of the present-day World Meteorological Organization founded in 1873 in Vienna. For the year 2008 was chosen the theme “Observing our Planet for a Better Future”, in recognition of the scientific and socio-economic benefits derived by WMO Members, their National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) and by the Organization as a whole, from the expanded, wide-ranging and authoritative observations made in the context of WMO’s mandate in weather, climate and water. Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (SMG) organized a set of activities in order to inform the population about the different areas of human activities in which the meteorology plays an important role, in general, and, in particular, about the activities undertaken by SMG which contribute for the sustainable development of the Macao Special Administrative Region. The first commemoration activity of the “World Meteorological Day 2008”, is “Safe Energy Reduce Emission start from me” talk in primary and secondary schools, with objective for the students understand in deep the climate change, its impacts on our life and the response from us. This activity is related to the formal extension to Macao of the Kyoto Protocol on 14 of January 2008. Other activity is a new service call “e-ME Electronic Mail Dissemination of Weather Report” after registration by the population, SMG will sent to his e-mail address the weather report chosen thought SMG website. A celebration ceremony will be held at SMG headquarters, on 20 of March at 10:00 a.m. in the Taipa Grande. It will also included on this occasion the beginning of the Typhoon Committee logo contest by the Typhoon Committee Secretary which is an activity take place in collaboration with SMG followed by a press conference. Looking at the history, in 23 March 1950, the WMO Convention created the World Meteorological Organization. This Organization has taken the responsibility of her predecessor, the International Meteorological Organization, for which has tasked to coordinate international cooperation in meteorology since 1873. In 1951, one year after it’s created, WMO was designated a specialized agency of the United Nations System. From there, it is celebrated annually the World Meteorological Day. In the last five years, it was defined the following themes for the WMD celebrations by all international meteorological community: “Polar Meteorology: Understanding Global Impacts (2007); “Preventing and Mitigating Natural Disasters” (2006); “Weather, Climate, Water and Sustainable Development” (2005); “Weather, Climate and Water in the Information Age” (2004); and “Our Future Climate” (2003).
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