World Environment Day 2026 – Community Action for Climate and Nature
Community Action for Climate and Nature
From wetlands and biodiversity to tree planting and local climate resilience, Soroptimists are supporting practical action rooted in their communities.
These projects show how environmental protection often begins locally: with schools, clubs, community groups and individuals working together to care for the places around them. Through education, planting, restoration, recycling and local dialogue, Soroptimists are helping communities understand environmental challenges and take practical steps in response.
Together, these initiatives reflect the importance of community-led action. By protecting natural spaces, raising awareness and encouraging local participation, Soroptimists are supporting healthier environments and more resilient communities.
SI Australia, SISEAP
School Children Advocate for Ramsar Protection
Soroptimist Bettina Nissen, a teacher with a passion for nature, art, poetry and literacy, works with vulnerable children, mostly girls, in northern Australia. Many of her class were illiterate, so other ways of communication were effective.
She took a primary school class on an excursion to Deception Bay foreshore, seaside and mud flats, so they could learn more about their own unique location. The most exciting finding was the red-winged stint, a migratory bird that flies 10,000 kilometres each way from Siberia to Australia each year.
Ramsar sites were established in 1971 to protect wetlands and endangered species, especially migratory birds. These tiny birds, the size of your hand, set off from near the Arctic Circle over 22 countries to land at the Sunshine Coast on the East Asian-Australian Flyway.
Research with the children showed how climate change and coastal development affect these birds. If birds are not fully fed before leaving Siberia, their journey may be impaired before it starts. With fewer safe stopovers along Asian coastlines, tired birds can fall from the sky, becoming prey or a corpse.
The project helped children understand the moral obligation to protect these birds by protecting their wetland habitats.
SI St Vincent and the Grenadines, SIGBI
Plastic Pollution Awareness and Tree Planting
Led by an Environmental Scientist, SI St Vincent and the Grenadines conducted an awareness session with students from Kindergarten to Grade 5 at a primary school. The session focused on the effects of plastic pollution and the importance of individual responsibility.
Students were encouraged to take part through a question-and-answer segment, with tokens given for correct answers. This helped to make the session interactive and gave students the opportunity to reflect on what they had learned.
As part of the initiative, SISVG donated a recycling bin to the school specifically for plastic drinking bottles. The bin, branded with the SISVG logo and the universal recycling symbol, was generously donated by one of the club’s corporate sponsors.
The club also worked with the Diamond community on a community engagement session and planted 60 trees at Diamond Beach, including 40 sea grapes and 20 coconut trees.
Through education, recycling and tree planting, the project brought together children, community members and local partners to support practical environmental action. It also showed how awareness and small local changes can contribute to cleaner, greener and more responsible communities.
SI Canterbury, South East England, SIGBI
Biodiversity Improvements in Canterbury District Cemetery
For the past two years, SI Canterbury’s ongoing club project has focused on enhancing knowledge of biodiversity and implementing action based on this learning.
When the cemetery manager proposed the formation of a Friends of Canterbury Cemetery group, two members of the club took the lead on biodiversity improvements in Canterbury District Cemetery. The initiative is part of the newly formed Friends group, which aims to enhance awareness and enjoyment of the district cemetery for families and the wider public.
To date, the club has planned and gained local council funding of £904 for the planting of a native wildflower meadow and perennial planting in three small selected sites, identified with the cemetery manager.
Members have also engaged with the Kent Bat Group and the city tree warden to acquire planning advice and permissions for bat boxes in the coming year. They have sought advice from local and national tree specialists so that notable and Champion Trees can be mapped and labelled, and the current tree trail map updated.
The club has also engaged with local bird and insect specialists to gather background knowledge of previous records and surveys, and contributed to the planning of a forthcoming open day.
SI Esperance, Trinidad and Tobago, SIGBI
Pond Restoration and Planting in Palmiste Park
SI Esperance and Parvati Girls’ Hindu College Soroptimist School Club planted flowering shrubs, trees and ferns around the restored heart-shaped pond in Palmiste Park.
The park is a valued community space where families regularly picnic on special holidays and weekends, as well as using the walking path for daily exercise. By planting around the restored pond, the project supported the rejuvenation of a local green space used by residents and visitors.
SI Esperance partnered with the Palmiste Historical Society, with which the club has a Memorandum of Understanding, on two special days: World Environment Day and Corpus Christi. The project is ongoing and involved other environmentally aware organisations contributing to the wider rejuvenation effort.
Through planting and partnership, the project helped to strengthen community care for Palmiste Park and its natural surroundings. It also brought together Soroptimists, students and local organisations in practical action to protect and improve a shared public space.
The initiative shows how environmental work can support both nature and community wellbeing, especially when local people are involved in caring for the spaces they use and value.
Soroptimist Club of Follo, Norway, SIE
Women Driving Local Climate Solutions in Norway
As climate challenges intensify, local collaboration and inclusive approaches are essential to building resilient communities. In Norway, the Soroptimists of Follo are contributing to this effort by creating spaces for dialogue and engagement, ensuring that women are part of the conversation and the solutions.
In November 2025, the Soroptimists of Follo organised an open meeting to present the KRED – Centre for Climate-Resilient Change, a collaborative initiative bringing together academia, municipalities, businesses and civil society in the Oslofjord region. The event gathered around 13 participants, offering a focused platform to explore local responses to global climate challenges.
Expert speakers, including Professor Siri E. Hallstrøm and climate advisor Elisabeth Dahle, highlighted the interconnected impacts of climate change on health, food systems, urban development and social inclusion.
Within this context, the role of women is key. Women are often disproportionately affected by climate change, yet they are also powerful drivers of change within their communities. By engaging in initiatives such as KRED, women contribute to shaping inclusive, practical and community-based solutions that respond to real needs.
Through this project, the Norwegian Soroptimists support the active involvement of women in environmental action, helping to strengthen community resilience and awareness.
SIAF
Greening Our Horizons: Cultivating Climate Resilience Across Africa
Climate change affects everyone, but it does not affect everyone equally. Across the African continent, women and girls disproportionately bear the brunt of environmental degradation. They walk further to fetch water, work the frontlines of subsistence agriculture, and remain highly vulnerable to the economic shocks of severe droughts and flash floods.
Yet, defining African women and girls merely as victims of the climate crisis misses the most vital piece of the puzzle: they are also powerful drivers of ecological change. To mark World Environment Day, Soroptimist International Africa Federation highlights its flagship pan-African initiative, Greening Our Horizons: Soroptimists Leading the Way.
Originally piloted by the Soroptimist International Club of Nairobi Central and backed by Soroptimist International Foundation, Greening Our Horizons has evolved into SIAF’s premier pan-African environmental restoration drive. The initiative connects ecosystem restoration directly with food security, nutrition and economic empowerment.
The continental goal is to plant 500,000 indigenous trees, fruits and vegetables across five geographical SIAF regions by 2027. This includes cultivating 100,000 trees in public forests and rehabilitation centres, including the Kabete, Dagoreti Girls and Kirigiti Children’s Rehabilitation Centres, introducing shade, micro-climates and nutrition.
The initiative also supports capacity building by equipping local women and youth with practical technical skills in agroforestry, municipal rainwater harvesting and efficient drip irrigation. Alongside this, SIAF is advocating to register women-led environmental groups as Community Forest Associations, helping to secure legal co-management rights of local public forests.
Through education, advocacy and direct community action, SIAF is turning the World Environment Day theme into direct action across Africa. By investing in women’s ability to protect their environment, the initiative supports a more sustainable and prosperous future for the continent.
SI South Perth, Australia
Revitalising Davilak Crescent Bushland
SI South Perth partnered with the City of South Perth and the Friends of Davilak Crescent Bush group to help revitalise the Davilak Crescent Bushland.
Responding to the harsh realities of climate change and the urban heat island effect following Perth’s record-hot summer and dry autumn, eight SISP members dedicated 22 hours to watering May 2024 seedlings. This helped achieve an 80% survival rate through six months of drought.
Building on this work, nine SISP members and two friends contributed 27 hours to plant approximately 430 new native seedlings during the May 2025 Community Planting Day. Ongoing monthly bird counts also tracked a stable biodiversity of 12–14 species and up to 46 birds, showing how local partnerships can support both ecological sustainability and community wellbeing.
SI Bangsar and SI Melaka, Malaysia
World Clean Up Day and Turtle Conservation
SI Bangsar and SI Melaka joined with the Lions Club Melaka Raya for World Clean Up Day at Pantai Padang Kemunting, helping to protect Malaysia’s vulnerable coastline from plastic pollution.
Members, families and friends worked together to remove 52kg of plastic bottles and debris, directly safeguarding nesting grounds for local marine life. The project also created a memorable moment when one-day-old sea turtles made their first crawl towards the ocean, their path cleared of nylon ropes and cigarette butts.
The impact went beyond the shoreline. Volunteers spoke with local beachgoers and food vendors about practical ways to manage waste and prevent pollution at its source. For younger volunteers, a visit to the Padang Kemunting Turtle Conservation and Information Centre turned the day into a living classroom, linking environmental action with education and care for marine ecosystems.