The event will feature high-level presentations, roundtable discussions, and other cleanup-related activities.
On 8 December 2023, the United Nations General Assembly officially established World Cleanup Day, which will be observed annually on 20 September.
This year’s inaugural event, hosted by Tromsø, Norway—also known as the capital of the Arctic—is themed “Arctic Cities and Marine Litter.” The event aims to inspire other cities and communities worldwide to adopt sustainable practices that protect our planet’s polar and sub-polar regions.
The event will feature high-level presentations, roundtable discussions, and other cleanup-related activities.
The Arctic region deserves special attention in plastic and marine litter cleanup efforts. This delicate ecosystem is particularly susceptible to pollution, making waste management crucial for preserving biodiversity and ensuring environmental sustainability.
However, cities like Tromsø face unique challenges in managing waste and promoting sustainability. Located within the Arctic Circle, these cities’ coastlines experience extreme weather conditions, isolation, and remoteness. Long distances and expensive infrastructure and transportation make waste collection, recovery, and disposal processes costly and technically challenging. In addition, the Arctic regions are at the receiving end of ocean currents that bring litter from afar to these shores and rely on collaboration and positive action in many countries to reduce the litter influx to our shorelines.
Hosted by the City of Tromsø. World Cleanup Day 2024 is organised by GRID-Arendal, UN-Habitat, and the Norwegian Retailers’ Environment Fund (NREF) in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, the City of Tromsø, the Fram Centre, and Let’s Do It World.