Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972, World Environment Day, marked annually on June 5, is a vehicle through which the UN stimulates worldwide awareness of environmental issues and encourages political action.

Zen Earth Care Society, established by Zen department store, has joined hands this year with the French Embassy's La Fete – an annual celebration of French culture – to host 'Earth From Above', an exhibition of aerial photos shot in 110 cities by globetrotting photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand. The collaboration is part of Zen's 'We do Our Part for a Greener Earth' program of events.

The idea of the exhibition, which has been held in 40 countries so far, is clearly to promote greater environmental awareness. It is estimated that 120 million people worldwide have now had the pleasure of experiencing this remarkable collection.

To understand Yann Arthus-Bertrand's motivation, perhaps it is best to consider his own rather poetic description.

“ ... I want people to see the Earth as it is today, as faithfully as possible. What motivates me is the impact a photograph can have within the framework of environmental preservation. The great novelty of our time is that mankind now has the power to change its environment and I want my photographs to testify to this fact so people can come to realize it.”

The artist first became interested in aerial photography after learning to pilot a hot-air balloon. The time spent up in the skies far above the Earth, allowed Arthus-Bertrand to experiment with the medium.

Like landscape photography, aerial photography has to deal with several uncontrollable elements, such as the weather or other natural phenomena, such as an animal making an unannounced arrival or a plane entering the viewfinder. While these elements cannot be controlled, skilled photographers seem able to anticipate them well.

In the opinion of this writer, while clearly possessing such skills, Yann Arthus-Bertrand also makes a great job of interpreting a scene and delivering it as an impressive form of 'visual message'.