Hosting the Global Observance of the World Cleanup Day 2027

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 2027. 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 and collective action 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 in Tromsø, Norway on 20 September 2024, focused on “Arctic Cities and Marine Litter”. The second local Observance focused on textile waste and took place in Nairobi, Kenya, on 19-20 September 2025. The 2026 Global Observance was hosted by Shaoxing, China and took place under the theme “Clean Plates to Clean Cities” from 19-21 September 2026. World Cleanup Day 2027 is suggested to focus on Clean Communities, Inclusive Cities: Community-Led Waste Solutions.

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 waste reduction 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 and in-kind 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 2027, 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, including the venue and its facilities, as well as accommodation for sponsored participants and UN-Habitat personnel. Such contributions shall include, but are not limited to: 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; - Experience in hosting international events; - Accessibility of the city for travel of international participants. Proposed theme for World Cleanup Day 2027 This theme would focus on the critical role of communities in improving waste management and environmental conditions in informal settlements and underserved urban areas. Residents in these communities frequently face inadequate waste collection mechanisms, illegal dumping, environmental pollution and associated health risks, while often developing their own solutions to address gaps in municipal service provision. World Cleanup Day 2027 could highlight communityled and community-municipal approaches to waste prevention, collection, segregation, recycling and neighbourhood improvement. Particular attention could be given to women, youth, community organisations and informal waste workers, recognising their contributions while promoting safer working conditions, inclusion and equitable access to services. Beyond one-day cleanup activities, the theme would enco