Eco-Calendar: How you can care for Creation in 2026

Big Energy Saving Week (January 16-22)

Veganuary: Each year, thousands sign up to take part in Veganuary and commit to only eating plant-based food in January. Many permanently go vegan afterwards. Everybody is being advised to eat less meat and dairy for health and to reduce the carbon footprint, so Veganuary is a great way to explore new meal ideas. Going vegan also helps to protect animals, and who doesn’t want to do that?

Show the love (A Climate Coalition campaign): For ten years, The Climate Coalition has united communities behind the power of green hearts every February. Show The Love has grown public support for climate action through local events, heartfelt conversations and green heart craftivism in every corner of the country.

World Water Day (March 22): Every year, since 1993, the United Nations raises awareness about the importance of freshwater and the staggering 2.2 billion people worldwide who don’t have access to safe water. The main purpose of World Water Day is supporting the aim to provide everyone with water and sanitation by 2030. This is Sustainable Development Goal 6, one of 17 Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations in 2015. The theme for World Water Day 2024 is ‘Leveraging Water for Peace’.

Earth Hour (March 28): Every year in late March, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) encourages everyone around the world to switch off their (non-essential) lights and appliances for just one hour. It’s an easy way to show your support and show you care about the planet. Hopefully it will encourage you to only switch on what you need and reduce your overall energy consumption at other times as well. Not only will this help the planet it’ll save you money! Keep an eye on the link above for the date and hour for 2024. This is one of the easiest events on the Environmental Awareness Calendar to observe. The more people that take part, the more of a difference we can make.

Fairtrade fortnight (2-15 March)

Stop Food Waste Day (April 29): Food waste is a huge issue. We throw away a lot of food in our own homes, supermarkets throw surplus food away, and quite a lot of produce is deemed not ‘good enough’ to be sold to consumers. This is changing… slowly. Many UK supermarkets are now selling ‘wonky veg’, vegetables that, in the past, were not aesthetically pleasing enough to sell! Here are some crazy statistics from the Stop Food Waste Day website. 33% of all food produced globally and 45% of root crops, fruit and vegetables produced globally is lost or wasted per year. 8% of all greenhouse gas emissions each year are due to food loss and waste. 25% of the food wasted around the world could feed all of the 795 million undernourished people in the world. The average American family is wasting $1866 (around £1500) a year in food waste.

World Bee Day (May 20): I hope that by now everyone is aware of how important bees are and how we need to do much more to protect them. “Bees are some of the most important pollinators, ensuring food and food security, sustainable agriculture, and biodiversity, and they significantly contribute to the mitigation of climate change and the conservation of the environment. In the long-term, the protection of bees and the beekeeping sector can help reduce poverty and hunger, as well as preserve a healthy environment and biodiversity.”

No Mow May: For the whole month of May don’t mow your lawn! This is the perfect month for lazy gardeners and those that love wildlife. Let your lawn grow and check out the variety of grasses, flowers and flying insects that will enjoy your garden. What I like to do at the end of May is just mow around the edges of the lawn and a path through the middle. This then shows that the rest of your un-mown lawn is intentional and helps to appease neighbours who think you just don’t care about your garden. Leaving the lawn for longer means bees and other pollinators will still be able to take advantage of your insect friendly garden. Always check for wildlife before mowing, or strimming.

Environment Sunday (June 7) 

Great Big Green Week (June 6-14): “The Great Big Green Week is the UK’s biggest ever celebration of community action to tackle climate change and protect nature.” Considering the first Great Big Green week was only held in 2021, they had 250,000 people taking part by the next year!

World Environment Day (June 5): The foods we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink, many of the medicines that save our lives and the climate that make our planet inhabitable, all come from nature. We are more reliant on nature’s interconnected web and delicate balance than we can ever imagine

Plastic Free July: Try to reduce how much plastic you buy during the month of July. Make a concerted effort to buy loose fruit and vegetables and plastic free versions of things you would normally buy. “Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution – so we can have cleaner streets, oceans, and beautiful communities.”

National Allotment Week (August 12-18): In association with The National Allotments Association, National Allotments Week is all about publicising the benefits of having an allotment. Being outdoors and gardening have long been known to be good for your general health and mental well-being. And as far as I’m concerned growing your own food can’t be beaten for a sense of satisfaction! National Allotments Week is usually held early to mid-August.

Secondhand September: A campaign started by Oxfam, Secondhand September is, as they put it themselves… “a campaign that promotes donating, reusing, rewearing and restyling your clothes during September – and beyond!” Buying secondhand is always a good idea. It’s cheaper and it helps to reduce the number of ‘new’ products being made if there is less demand for them. It helps to preserve and conserve our natural resources. You can find some amazing things in secondhand shops, just take your time and go on a treasure hunt!

International e-waste day: What’s e-waste? International E-Waste Day sheds light on ‘invisible’ electronic waste. This refers to those items you probably don’t even realise you can recycle. It includes things like smoke detectors, electronic toys, e-cigarettes and even cables. Even that broken remote control you’ve got in a drawer could be recycled. Click the link above to find out more.

Buy Nothing Day (November 27): The most eco-friendly thing we can buy, is nothing’. Buy Nothing Day encourages everyone to think about the excessive consumerism we’ve got used to. This is by far the easiest environmental awareness day to participate in because you literally have to do nothing!

World soil day (December 5): Every 5 seconds, the equivalent of one soccer field of soil is eroded. (…) It can take up to 1,000 years to produce just 2-3cm of soil… Soil erosion can lead up to a 50% loss in crop yields.” World Soil Day aims to increase awareness about how important soil actually is.