What is World Environment Day?
The UN's World Environment Day is held every year on 5 June. It is a global platform for inspiring positive change and brings together people from all over the world to protect the environment and encourage further conservation. This year's World Environment Day, hosted by the Republic of Korea in Jeju Province, will focus on ending plastic pollution with the theme #BeatPlasticPollution.
Why should you get involved with World Environment Day?
Our students are the future, and as teachers, we can inspire them with a passion for protecting our environment. With plastic pollution becoming an increasingly urgent issue - an estimated 11 million tonnes of plastic waste leak into aquatic ecosystems each year - World Environment Day 2025 is a brilliant opportunity to engage students in meaningful action against plastic pollution.
Whole-school ideas for World Environment Day
We've expanded our World Environment Day resource to include 20 engaging activities (5 new ones!) that could be completed on 5 June or used throughout the year. Here are five particularly relevant activities that align with this year's #BeatPlasticPollution theme:
- Create a plastic audit challenge. Students track their plastic use for a week, creating visual displays of their findings. Challenge them to reduce their usage by 50% the following week - a great way to raise awareness of personal plastic consumption.
- Design and build plastic pollution filters. Students create water filtration systems to remove microplastics from water samples using simple materials like cotton wool, sand and gravel. This hands-on experiment connects with both science and geography.
- Start a plastic-free lunch initiative. Challenge classes or tutor groups to bring lunches without single-use plastic packaging. Create a competition to generate the least plastic waste, encouraging creative alternatives to plastic packaging.
- Create a plastic art exhibition. Students transform clean plastic waste into artwork that communicates messages about plastic pollution. Consider inviting parents and community members to view your inspiring exhibition!
- Develop a plastic-free alternatives guide. Students research and create an illustrated guide showing plastic-free alternatives for common items used at school and home. They can interview local shop owners and create a practical resource for the whole school community.
Check out our complete World Environment Day 2025 activity pack for more ideas and links to further resources.
Classroom resources for World Environment Day 2025
To support your World Environment Day 2025 lessons, we've curated a collection of classroom-ready resources suitable for both primary and secondary.
Primary teaching resources
For primary teachers looking to engage younger children with World Environment Day's #BeatPlasticPollution theme, we've developed several new resources that make this complex topic accessible and engaging. Here's how you can use them:
Understanding plastic pollution
Start with our new introduction to plastic pollution, which breaks down this important issue into child-friendly explanations. Follow this up with a practical litter survey activity where children can become 'plastic pollution detectives' in their school grounds.
Creative activities
Encourage creativity while spreading awareness through our poster design activity. This can be extended into literacy work using our persuasive letter writing resource, perfect for children to voice their concerns about plastic pollution to local councillors or MPs.
Cross-curricular opportunities
In Design and Technology, use our 101 Uses for a Plastic Bottle activity to help KS2 children think creatively about recycling and reusing plastic materials. This hands-on activity encourages children to consider material properties and sustainable design principles.
Taking action
Help your class make a real difference using our event planning resource. This structured guide supports children in organising their own awareness-raising events about reducing, reusing and recycling. It's an excellent way to develop leadership skills while addressing environmental issues.
These resources can be used not just for World Environment Day, but throughout the year to maintain momentum in your school's environmental initiatives. They're designed to be flexible, allowing you to adapt them to suit your class's needs and interests.
Secondary teaching resources
Understanding through geography
In geography, integrate the #BeatPlasticPollution theme through our comprehensive plastic pollution research project. This ready-to-use resource combines guided internet research with practical fieldwork activities measuring local plastic pollution levels. Students can conduct meaningful investigations while developing their geographical skills through creative tasks like persuasive letter writing and awareness campaign design.
Enhance students' understanding of sustainability and global impact with our Think globally, drink locally resource. This engaging unit examines the sustainability of bottled water, combining map analysis skills with an investigation into plastic bottle life cycles. Students evaluate water supply and demand while critically assessing the environmental impact of single-use plastic water bottles.
Scientific exploration
In science, students can explore the chemistry of plastics and their environmental impact. They could conduct experiments on microplastic identification or investigate how different types of plastic break down in various environments.
Developing literacy skills
In English, students can develop their analytical and persuasive writing skills by examining the global plastic crisis. Activities might include analysing media coverage of plastic pollution or crafting persuasive speeches about environmental issues and reducing plastic consumption.
Modern foreign languages
In French, Spanish and German, students can explore environmental issues through the lens of plastic pollution. They could research how various countries are tackling plastic waste, compare recycling initiatives, and discuss solutions in the target language.
