Background 

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is inviting national, regional and local governments, private sector (preferably registered with the UN Global Compact), non-governmental organizations, foundations, educational institutions, and other interested organizations to express their interest in hosting the Global Observance of World Cleanup Day 2025. On 8 December 2023, World Cleanup Day was established by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in its Resolution A/RES/78/122 to be observed annually on 20 September to address the global waste management challenges through coordinated voluntary action, fostering collaboration, and raising awareness about reducing waste pollution. 

The day highlights global efforts aimed at raising awareness and its contribution to achieving sustainable development with participation from Member States, the United Nations system, other international and regional organizations, as well as relevant stakeholders, including civil society, the private sector and academia. The inaugural commemoration observed on 20 September 2024, focused on “Arctic Cities and Marine Litter”. 

World Cleanup Day 2025 will focus on textile and fashion waste, a significant component of municipal solid waste, particularly in urban households and markets. If not properly managed, textile and fashion waste causes environmental harm, health hazards and disruption in vital urban services and infrastructure. Tackling this global challenge will enhance environmental sustainability while supporting informal workers who rely on textile recycling for their livelihoods. Addressing textile and fashion waste also fosters social equity, strengthens community well-being, and contributes to building more resilient and inclusive urban environments. 

The topic of textile waste aligns with the theme of the International Day of Zero Waste 2025, celebrated on 30 March and co-facilitated by UNEP and UN-Habitat. This synergy builds momentum, creating a continuum between the two international celebrations to amplify advocacy and drive action. 

Objective 

World Cleanup Day aims to raise awareness about the global crisis of mismanaged waste by mobilizing all sectors, and especially society, to actively engage in cleanup initiatives. It calls on individuals, governments, corporations, and organizations to join forces in addressing waste management challenges and promoting sustainable solutions to reduce the impact of improper waste disposal worldwide.

Participation 

UN-Habitat will lead in global mobilization and inviting the United Nations system, relevant international organizations, civil society, and all other identified stakeholders to observe World Cleanup Day. The host of the Global Observance will take the lead in organizing the logistics of the event in close collaboration with UNHabitat. The event programme will be developed jointly by the host and UN-Habitat. The host may invite other stakeholders in the country and region, such as Ministers and Mayors, to take part and support the Global Observance. A call to action will be extended by the host and UN-Habitat to the public, locally and globally, encouraging active participation through various platforms such as social media and live streaming. 

The host provides a financial contribution to UN-Habitat to facilitate the organization of the event and mobilization of the international community and other stakeholders, ensuring the event receives global visibility. Details on the commitments, roles and responsibilities of UN-Habitat and the host will be outlined in a contribution agreement signed by all parties involved. 

Financial contribution 

To facilitate the Global Observance of World Cleanup Day 2025, the host is required to provide a cash contribution of USD 300,000 (United States Dollars Three Hundred Thousand) to UN-Habitat. The contribution will be used for planning, stakeholder mobilization, outreach communication through online social media engagement, programme development, operational support, live streaming on UN Web TV and e.g. Zoom, reporting and evaluation as well as participation of UN-Habitat and other UN staff, international experts and high-level guests and delegates. Overall, UN-Habitat will support the global advocacy for and communication of World Cleanup Day globally. 

Additionally, the host will be required to provide an in-kind contribution of the venue with its facilities, and not limited to, the following: exhibition space, branding of the venue and city, Information Communication Technology (ICT), Wi-Fi and other services, security within the city, around and within the venue, interpretation from English to two other UN languages and the local language (if different from English), international sign language (English), operational and logistical needs with respective human resources.

Selection process and criteria 

The selection of the host will be conducted by a UN-Habitat internal committee. The selection will be guided by: 

• Demonstration of good practices within the country, city or the host organization to act as a model for sustainable urbanization, in particular sustainable resources and waste management and environmental stewardship.  
• Demonstration of ability and financial commitment to meet the conditions outlined above and provided in more detail in the Annex below. Expression of Interest: Hosting the Global Observance of the World Cleanup Day 2025 and 2026 2  
• Experience in hosting international events. 
• Accessibility of the city for travel of international participants.

Proposed theme for World Cleanup Day 2025 

A pressing and growing issue, exacerbated by the rise of fast and ultra-fast fashion trends, is the mounting problem of textile waste. A potential theme for 2025, “Tackling Textile and Fashion Waste Through Circular Fashion,” emphasizes the urgency of addressing this challenge through clean-ups and promoting circular fashion systems. The fashion and textile sector contributes the equivalent of a garbage truck full of clothes to landfill or incineration every second around the world1 , harming ecosystems and communities. Driven by a narrative centered around newness, immediacy and disposability, clothing production doubled between 2000 and 2015, while the number of times a garment was worn before being discarded decreased by 36% during the same period². 

Clean-ups mitigate immediate environmental damage from discarded garments and microplastics, but lasting solutions require systemic change. By combining clean-up efforts with circular fashion practices, we contribute to sustainable urbanization, ensuring textiles remain in the economy rather than the environment while paving the way for resilient urban environments. 

Proposed theme for World Cleanup Day 2026

Food Waste - “Local Action as the Foundation of Global Change.” 

In 2022, an alarming 1.05 billion tons of food were wasted, while 783 million people experienced hunger and a third of the global population faced food insecurity3 . Food loss and waste contribute to 8-10% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions and drive significant biodiversity loss, consuming nearly a third of the world’s agricultural land. The economic impact is equally staggering, with an estimated USD 1 trillion lost annually due to food waste and loss. 

Addressing this crisis requires innovative solutions, such as enhancing supply chain efficiency, improving storage infrastructure, and promoting policies that encourage food redistribution. Community clean-ups also play a critical role, as they not only reduce waste but foster awareness and collective action to minimize food loss and its environmental impact. By mitigating food waste locally, communities can achieve substantial environmental benefits, such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions from landfills through composting or donating excess food. Addressing food waste also promotes sustainable food systems by supporting local food production and advocating for better food management practices.

Activities 

Activities related to the Global Observance will be developed in line with available human and financial resources from the voluntarily contribution by the host. UN-Habitat will provide online advocacy tools and kits to support the mobilization of partners to maximize outreach. Details of planned World Cleanup Day activities taking place around the world will be uploaded by UN-Habitat on its webpage and social media sites. The host and partners will be encouraged to promote the activities widely in their networks. 

Timeframe 

The closing date for receiving the Expression of Interest to host World Cleanup Day 2025 is 31 March 2025. The table below outlines important milestones and dates.

The closing date for receiving the Expression of Interest to host World Cleanup Day 2026 is 15 July 2025. The table below outlines important milestones and dates.

Expression of Interest to host the Global Observance of World Cleanup Day 2025 and 2026 

National, regional and local governments, private sector (preferably registered with the UN Global Compact), non-governmental organizations, foundations, educational institutions, or other interested organizations wishing to express its interest in officially hosting the Global Observance of World Cleanup Day 2025 are required to send an official communication in English on organizational letterhead and authorized signature, highlighting its capacity in the areas outlined under the selection criteria and indicating its commitment to provide a financial contribution of USD 300,000 (United States Dollars Three Hundred Thousand) to UN-Habitat, addressed to the UN-Habitat Executive Director, Ms. Anacláudia Rossbach. 

The official communication is to be transmitted within the deadline to the following Email addresses: wastewisecities@un.org copying unhabitat-events@un.org with subject of the Email “Expression of Interest to host Global Observance of World Cleanup Day 2025” and/or “Expression of Interest to host Global Observance of World Cleanup Day 2026”. 

Please note: Any submission which does not meet the criteria or is not on an official letterhead and duly signed, or received after the deadline will not be considered.