The eighth World Cleanup Day, held on September 20, saw participation from millions of people across 190 countries and territories — representing nearly 90 percent of United Nations members. This year, the focus was on drawing global attention to the environmental footprint caused by wars, which is why the global cleanup coordination center was located in Kyiv.
According to Heidi Solba, leader of World Cleanup Day and President of Let's Do It World, the event has always been about more than just cleaning streets. "It's about restoring communities and countries physically, socially, and morally. In times of conflicts and wars, we cannot remain passive. Making the world cleaner means restoring peace, unity, and trust. Our mission is not just collecting trash, but breaking down structural barriers. We want to create a norm based on cooperation, responsibility, and caring for the planet."
Cleanup activities were held on beaches, in cities and in villages — many with tens of thousands of people participating. Cleanups were joined by thousands of schools, universities, communities, as well as many embassies and various institutions and organisations. In Mozambique, for example, 5,300 state schools participated in the cleanup.
This year's global cleanup took place in very different conditions: in extreme heat, as well as through heavy rains in many countries. In some regions, participants turned the single day into a full ‘cleanup week.’ There were countries where heavy rain, typhoons, political instability, or upcoming elections forced events to be postponed or even cancelled.
According to international media monitoring by Meltwater, the World Cleanup Day received nearly 2.4 billion potential views across various media outlets and 429 million mentions in a single day on 20 September. According to Heidi Solba, this demonstrates how mass environmental action can gain global attention. "This year, we operated for the second time as a UN-designated day, which also gave momentum to our impactful activities," Solba added.
The movement that began in Estonia was supported by a large portion of Estonia's foreign diplomatic corps and most Estonian embassies around the world. "It's gratifying to see how an Estonian initiative has now become a truly global movement, celebrated for the second consecutive year as an official UN day," said Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna.
Tsahkna continued: "This year's extensive international participation and the coordination of the day from Kyiv helped highlight particularly clearly the severe environmental damage caused by Russia's military operations in Ukraine. With this, we sent an unequivocal message that the international community firmly supports Ukraine in its recovery, resilience, and commitment to environmental protection."
The global movement Let's Do It World originated in Estonia and is more than a cleanup action — it's a step toward deep systemic change. The organisers have set themselves an ambitious goal — to engage at least 5% of the planet's population, which will help create long-term and lasting change. Final results are still being tallied.
Over seven years, from 2018-2024, World Cleanup Day has grown into a true global phenomenon: more than 114 million people from 211 countries and territories have joined forces for a cleaner planet. A total of more than 708,000 tonnes of waste has been collected, habitats have been restored. As a result, millions of animals have been protected, as well as thousands of rivers, lakes, parks, and streets from pollution.
This year, Ukraine hosted World Cleanup Day’s international Call and Media Centre for the first time — a decision that was symbolic for the entire world. The centre's location in Kyiv drew attention to the environmental problems facing countries at war, while demonstrating Ukraine's resilience and readiness to connect environmental restoration with national recovery.
More info:
Heidi Solba
President and CEO of the Let’s Do It World / World Cleanup Day
Tel + 372 51 34743
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