Mandela Day 2025: Building Climate Resilience at ECD Centres

Each year on 18 July, South Africans honour Nelson Mandela’s legacy by giving 67 minutes of their time to do good. This year, the DO MORE FOUNDATION's Mandela Day campaign invites you to help build a better climate future for South Africa’s youngest citizens focuses on one powerful message:

“A better climate future begins with the children. And this change starts with play.”

We are inviting you to help build a better climate future for South Africa’s youngest citizens.

The Urgent Need for Climate-Smart ECD Centres

As climate change continues to bring extreme heat, flooding and droughts, young children in under-resourced areas are feeling the impact the most. Many Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres operate without shade, clean water or safe infrastructure, making it harder for children to grow, play and learn in healthy environments.

“This Mandela Day, your contribution goes far beyond infrastructure; it’s an investment in a child’s future,” says Warren Farrer, CEO.

That’s why our 2025 campaign is focused on upgrading ECD centres in nine vulnerable regions across KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, North-West, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the Western Cape. These upgrades will make centres more climate-resilient and child-friendly through:

• Shaded outdoor play areas
• Drought-resistant trees
• Water harvesting kits for clean water
• Solar-powered fans and lights
• Climate resilience play packs
• Climate education for ECD teachers and caregivers

“ECD centres are often the heartbeat of their communities,” says Jabu Mthembu-Dlamini, Community Programmes Lead. “By improving these spaces, we’re protecting children and proving that climate action can start right where people are.”

Play Can Inspire Climate Action

The Climate Resilience Play Packs are specially designed to help 2- to 5-year olds explore big topics, like weather, seasons and basic climate change, in a fun, age-appropriate way. They include games, storybooks, and colourful resources that make learning interactive and hopeful.

Corporate volunteers will use their 67 minutes this Mandela Day to help assemble and deliver these packs to ECD centres across the country.

“Early childhood is the ideal time to build climate awareness and spark action,” says Dr Jessica Ronaasen, Advocacy and Innovation Lead. “We’re supporting young children, teachers and parents to develop everyday climate-smart behaviours, like saving water, protecting trees or staying safe in heatwaves.”

Be Part of the Change

Last year, our Mandela Day campaign reached 9,600 children and upgraded 192 centres, thanks to the efforts of 500 volunteers and 25 business partners.

This year, we’re aiming even higher.

Here are the two ways you can get involved in supporting climate-resilience at ECD centres this Mandela Day:

1. Sponsor a climate resilience item: We’ve created a menu of 12 items you can sponsor - from a Climate Play Pack for R67, to a water harvesting kit for R5,000, or even a full climate resilience upgrade for an ECD centre at R20,000. Sponsor here.

2. Donate any amount: If you’d prefer to make a general donation, you can give whatever amount you like to support our broader climate resilience work in ECD centres. Donate here.

Thanks to early donations, we’re already able to fully upgrade 20 ECD centres with climate-resilient resources. But the need is far greater and with more partners stepping in, we can reach hundreds more before and after Mandela Day!

Let’s DO MORE for South Africa's young children. DO MORE for the planet. DO MORE together.