December: Awareness Months & Holidays for Causes (2024) (2024)

Every month, there are hundreds of national and international celebrations dedicated to raising awareness and support for meaningful causes.

For those working to bring attention to important topics, it can be challenging to keep track of the next relevant awareness event. We’re here to help.

At Good Good Good, we aim to help people feel more hopeful and do more good. For years we’ve privately curated a comprehensive list of important cause-themed holidays that we’ve used for creating content on our good news Instagram, our Goodnewsletter, our Goodnewspaper, and on this very website.

We’ve organized this list of observances and events by month — and are making them public for the first time. Our hope is that this list of December awareness days and months will help you or your organization bring attention to important issues.

We should note that December is among the most sparse months for awareness days and months — likely because traditional winter holidays tend to overshadow any awareness holidays.

Regardless, where applicable, we’ve included resources (usually good news around particular topics, action steps on how to make a difference, or relevant quotes) — and encourage you to share them if you find them helpful.

The main days and months you should know about for December are:

DecemberHolidays	Date
Dressember	December 1
World AIDS Day	December 1
International Day of Persons with Disabilities	December 3
Wildlife Conservation Day	December 4
Human Rights Day	December 10
Bill of Rights Day	December 15

December is the twelfth month of the year and has 31 days. It includes the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, the Winter Solstice, and marks the beginning of summer in the Southern Hemisphere. December is filled with diverse cultural and religious celebrations worldwide, including Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa.

Explore our comprehensive list of national and international months, weeks, days, and birthdays for the month of December:

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December Celebrations:

Awareness Months

There are several awareness months celebrated in December — though the five that often get the most attention include HIV/AIDS Awareness Month, Universal Human Rights Month, Seasonal Affective Disorder Awareness Month, Learn a Foreign Language Month, and Dressember.

Dressember

Learn more about how Dressember is using dresses to make a difference

Seasonal Affective Disorder Awareness Month

National Car Donation Month

HIV/AIDS Awareness Month

Universal Human Rights Month

Learn a Foreign Language Month

International Sharps Injury Prevention Awareness Month

Learn a Foreign Language Month

World Twin To Twin Transfusion Syndrome Awareness Month

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Awareness Weeks

There are no specific awareness weeks celebrated in December — though many holidays are celebrated throughout the month.

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Awareness Days

Rosa Parks Bus Seat Refusal Anniversary - December 1

Read and share the best quotes from Rosa Parks — including quotes about refusing to give up her bus seat

World AIDS Day - December 1

Notable Birthdays

Birthdays of leading activists, nonprofit leaders, and other world-changers:

Janelle Monae’s Birthday - December 1

Terence Lester’s Birthday - December 4

Listen to our podcast conversation with Terence Lester

Ella Baker’s Birthday - December 13

Pope Francis’s Birthday - December 17

Leah Thomas’s Birthday - December 17

Learn about Leah Thomas and read about the movement she started around intersectional environmentalism

Ronan Farrow’s Birthday - December 19

Alyssa Milano’s Birthday - December 19

Jane Fonda’s Birthday - December 21

Read and share iconic quotes from Jane Fonda

LeBron James’ Birthday - December 30

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You might also like: The Best December Quotes

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Explore More Events:

Main Awareness Calendars: All Awareness Holidays | Heritage Months | International Days

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Is this list missing a holiday or awareness week/month? Let us know. We want to ensure this list is comprehensive and inclusive.