Nearly 1,800 lbs of trash is discarded by the average American every year, with 62% of this waste ending up in landfills. Reducing waste is something that everyone should aim to do, to protect our planet. The zero waste movement aims to educate people about the negative impacts of waste and reduce our personal environmental damage. So, we had to ask: What is the most important information you need to know about this year’s Zero Waste Week?

👉 Official Name: Zero Waste Week
💚 Cause: Reduce landfill waste and have a positive impact on the planet
📅 Next Date: September 7-13, 2026
🌐 Official Website: https://www.zerowasteweek.co.uk/
🐦 Hashtag: #ZeroWasteWeek

Keep on reading to find out all the important information about Zero Waste Week at a glance, including its big picture, why it’s important, and how you can get involved. We’ll then share its brief history, three interesting facts about it, its future dates, and how you’ll never miss any important awareness event again.

The Most Important Information About Zero Waste Week at a Glance

1️⃣ The big picture: Zero Waste Week is an award-winning grassroots movement, raising awareness about the environmental impacts of waste. It also helps individuals and organizations, such as schools, and businesses, to reduce their production of non-recyclable waste. It is celebrated during the first full week of September every year.

2️⃣ Why it is important: There are currently over 3,000 active landfills open in America, and a further 10,000 closed landfills, each with an average size of 600 acres. This has led to over 1,800,000 acres of habitat loss in the US alone. Though landfills are the biggest contributors to soil pollution, around 80% of the products in landfills could actually be recycled. With waste having such a catastrophic impact on the planet, it is important for events such as Zero Waste Week to encourage people to reduce, reuse, and recycle as much as possible.

3️⃣ How you can get involved: You can easily get involved with Zero Waste Week and reduce your waste, even if committing to a fully zero-waste lifestyle seems daunting:

1. Try Going Zero Waste: Try going fully zero-waste for a week, to allow yourself to lead by example. Reducing waste in our day-to-day lifestyle is undoubtedly a challenge, but it’s something we can all aim to be better at. You can sign up for the official challenge on the Zero Waste Week website and set your own goals, whether trying to reduce your plastic use by 10% or cutting it out completely!
2. Educate Others: Share the challenge with your friends and family and encourage them to take part. Perhaps you could also see if your school or workplace would be open to celebrating and setting their own sustainability challenge during Zero Waste Week.
3. Share Your Successes on Social Media: Using the hashtag #ZeroWasteWeek is a great way to share your successes when it comes to taking part in this awareness event. By connecting with a wide audience, you can challenge others to get involved.

Below are our favorite charities that are especially relevant for Zero Waste Week:

• 9 Best Charities that Promote Recycling
• 9 Best Charities that Fight to End Plastic Waste

A Brief History of Zero Waste Week

When was this event established: Zero Waste Week was founded in 2008 by Rachelle Strauss in the UK after she confronted her own sustainability and waste generation. Originally, the event had just 100 participants, but many of the participants started to be more conscious about waste reduction in their everyday lives.

How has it developed since then: Since its founding, Zero Waste Week has gone on to be celebrated by millions of participants around the world. From businesses to individuals, community groups, schools, and local authorities, the event has made a real impact on reducing waste. On Instagram alone, over 26,000 people have used the #ZeroWasteWeek hashtag.

3 Interesting Facts About Zero Waste Week

1. The Five R’s: The main pillars of the zero waste movement today are the Five R’s: refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle, and rot. Though the name implies that you can create absolutely no waste, the zero-waste movement is more about rethinking your purchases and lifestyle choices to make them as ethical as possible. Start out simple, by switching to a bamboo toothbrush, or carrying a reusable coffee cup with you!
2. Founded in the 1970s: The term ‘zero-waste’ was coined in the 1970s by academic and chemist, Paul Palmer, who went on to found the Zero Waste Institute in California.
3. Zero Waste for A Stronger Economy: Though it is clear that less waste in landfills has a positive impact on the planet, it actually has a positive impact on the economy as well! Recycling facilities create nine times more jobs than landfills, and reusing can create as many as 30 times more jobs!

Upcoming Dates of Zero Waste Week

Zero Waste Week is observed every year during the first full week of September.