MAY events & content ideas for Ethical & sustainable brands

DO you know what you will you be posting on social media for your conscious business in may?

April may have been all about Earth Month & Earth Day, but May has plenty of exciting international days to look out for and incorporate into your social media content calendar for your purpose-driven brand too.

Ready to celebrate bees, laughter, biodiversity, fair trade & more? Then let’s dive in!

May 1st: May Day, Workers’ Day or International Labour Day

#WorkersDay #InternationalWorkersDay #InternationalLabourDay

May Day is a holiday in certain countries or has local traditions like giving lily of the valley in France to celebrate Spring. It’s also a common day to celebrate work/labour. You can find out more about it in this NPR article and the Encyclopaedia Britannica.

If May Day isn’t celebrated by your community, you can post what’s coming up for your brand in May or an April impact wrap-up.

May 7th (first Sunday in May): World Laughter Day

#WorldLaughterDay

Spread some extra joy by sharing what’s been making you laugh recently (Instagram accounts, videos, shows, movies, books… or things that have happened to you / your team) and ask your community what’s been making them laugh lately. We could all use more laughter in our lives, after all!

May 12th: International Day of Plant Health

#PlantHealthDay

Share tips on how to protect indoor and outdoor plants, or discuss the importance of healthy plants to ‘help end hunger, reduce poverty, protect biodiversity and the environment, and boost economic development’ (via fao.org).
For more information and resources, check out www.fao.org/plant-health-day/en.

May 13th (2nd Saturday in May): World Fair Trade Day

#WorldFairTradeDay

Highlight the links between fair trade, sustainability, climate justice & social justice, share what your brand’s fair trade practices are and/or amplify the messages of activists & initiatives in this space. A great place to start is with the World Fair Trade Organization’s 10 Principles of Fair Trade.

May 14th (date varies): Mother’s Day

#MothersDay2023

The date does vary from country to country, but May 14th is Mother’s Day for most places around the world in 2023. Celebrate all the amazing moms out there (while being inclusive of what motherhood can mean), talk about your own mom(s) or experience with motherhood… or share a message of support to those for whom this may be a difficult day for a variety of reasons.

May 15th: International Day of Families

#InternationalDayOfFamilies

Share a quote about family or a story about your own, acknowledge the many different types of families there are – including chosen families or showcase initiatives working hard to support struggling families or reunite those that have been separated.

May 17th:  International Day Against LGBTQIA+ Discrimination

#May17 #IDAHOBIT

Share your support as an ally for the LGBTQIA+ community, amplify LGBTQIA+ voices (on your team, in your community, worldwide…), and/or highlight your favorite LGBTQIA+ activists & initiatives.

May 20th: World Bee Day

#WorldBeeDay

Share some appreciation for our busy pollinators and their key role in the sustainability of our global ecosystem, along with some bee-friendly actions your audience can take. Check out the UN FAO’s World Bee Day-related infographics for content inspiration.

May 21st: World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development

#CulturalDiversity

Share why cultural diversity is important for your brand, share your own diversity practices, and amplify culturally diverse voices. Check out my article Incorporating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into your conscious brand’s social media strategy for some tips.

May 22nd: International Biodiversity Day

#BiodiversityDay

Share facts & figures about the benefits of biodiversity & its key role in sustainable development along with some ways on how each of us can protect / enhance the biodiversity locally or globally. Check out the Convention on Biological Diversity’s lists of 22 Activities for Biodiversity for inspiration.

If creating social media content is not your area of expertise, you want a fresh set of eyes on your socials or you simply have too many other things to focus on while running your purpose-driven business…

And as a bonus, here are my favorite links to find upcoming international and national events for my clients:

• The UN and UNESCO‘s lists of monthly observances
• This Wikipedia list of environmental dates
• The Twitter marketing calendar
• These lists of LGBTQ+ events here & here