This year marks the second time that World Cleanup Day features on the United Nations Calendar, with this global event taking place on 20 September. Let’s Do It World—the organisation leading the initiative for the past eight years—anticipates strong participation from communities and corporations around the world. At its core, World Cleanup Day is about uniting, taking action together, and celebrating our shared commitment as a global community.
Meaningful impact can only be achieved through collective action—when enough people come together to drive systemic change. Our strategy is to mobilise 5% of the global population, the critical mass required to spark large-scale societal transformation.
This is the inspiration behind our 2025 World Cleanup Day lead campaign ‘Strive for Five’, which encourages and empowers communities to reach the mass participation levels needed to care for our planet at scale.
In alignment with the UN’s 2025 theme, Let’s Do It World is also running an awareness campaign focused on textile waste, aiming to shift consumer behaviour and habits through the World Cleanup Day platform. This issue has become central to our environmental advocacy work.
The numbers are staggering. Each year, the world produces over 100 billion garments, yet around 92 million tonnes of textile waste are discarded—equivalent to one garbage truck of clothing dumped in landfill every second.
The fashion industry is now the second-most polluting globally, contributing to water contamination, carbon emissions, and resource depletion.
Fast fashion has exacerbated the crisis. Consumers now purchase 60% more clothing than they did 15 years ago, yet keep each item for only half as long. This cycle of overconsumption and rapid disposal has created a mountain of waste that threatens long-term environmental sustainability.
Textile waste doesn’t just occupy space in landfill—it causes environmental damage with long-lasting consequences. Synthetic fabrics can take up to 200 years to decompose, leaching harmful chemicals into soil and groundwater.
Each wash of synthetic clothing releases thousands of microplastic fibres into waterways, eventually reaching oceans and entering the food chain. The production of these garments also involves enormous amounts of water, energy, and raw materials—resources wasted when clothes are quickly discarded.
The textile industry is estimated to contribute around 10% of global carbon emissions, much of it tied to the production of items that are quickly discarded.
Awareness campaigns serve as the crucial first step towards meaningful change. Many people are unaware of the environmental impact of their clothing choices or simply don’t realise more sustainable options are within reach.
That’s why our textiles campaigns focus on education and empowerment—educating communities about the scale of the textile waste problem and its far-reaching environmental consequences, as well as offering practical advice on extending garment life and making use of available recycling and upcycling possibilities. By making the invisible visible, we inspire people to make more conscious choices about their consumption habits and lifestyle decisions.
Increased public pressure, driven by growing awareness, in turn pushes brands to adopt more transparent and sustainable practices.
When organisations join World Cleanup Day, their involvement multiplies the impact far beyond what individuals can achieve. Participating companies demonstrate leadership in environmental stewardship, inspiring their employees, customers, and stakeholders alike.
They also bring essential resources—from equipment and volunteers to technical know-how. Business participation often drives innovation, such as advanced textile recycling methods or sustainable fashion initiatives.
And most importantly, when companies take a stand, they can influence policy and help reshape industry norms—creating ripple effects across their sector.
World Cleanup Day 2025’s focus on mobilising 5% of the world’s population and its awareness campaign on textiles waste are not just about cleaning up what already exists—it’s about preventing future waste through long-term, systemic change.
Every action contributes to the bigger picture. Whether you participate as an individual, family, school, or organisation, your contribution matters. Together, we’re raising awareness, shifting behaviours, and laying the groundwork for a more sustainable tomorrow—collectively working towards solutions that benefit everyone.
World Cleanup Day 2025 is our collective opportunity to confront the waste crisis head-on through coordinated, unified action. By bringing people onto the streets and involving organisations worldwide, we are creating a global movement with momentum that extends far beyond a single day, and drives lasting change for our planet’s future.
Join us in making 2025 the year we all act together—to clean up our world and build a more sustainable future for generations to come.
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