Events to be held in Hungary over the coming days will have a special focus on environmental awareness.

The national Te Szedd! (“You Pick It!”) litter collection drive will be held for the third consecutive year on 14 September, during which volunteers will collect household rubbish left in the countryside and at illegal tips, excluding dangerous materials.  The organisers would like as many as possible of Hungary’s 3,200 settlements to join the initiative after around 150 thousand volunteers in 700 towns and villages collected some 3,000 tons of litter last year.

Environmental programs, including Car Free Day, will continue next week within the framework of the European Mobility Week to be held between 16 and 22 September 2013. The event, declared a European Initiative in 2000, has in recent years attracted more than 2,000 participating cities and towns across the world thus conveying the message of Mobility Week to as many as 200 million people. In Hungary, which has been involved in the activities since the very beginning, more than one hundred local governments have organised their own mobility events in the past two years, putting Hungary in third place among the countries to involve the most participating cities and towns. Furthermore, according to preliminary data, the number of Hungarian settlements registering to participate in the drive may reach a record high this year.

In Hungary, European Mobility Week 2013 will offer fascinating and exciting activities each day for everyone, from the youngest participants to the eldest. A number of opportunities will be provided to gather information and experiences about the various means of transport, the main transport control centre of the capital and all the interesting facts and features on both underground and surface transport facilities in Budapest. Activities will also be organised for participants interested in theatre and recreation or technical developments. The most important element of the events will be the Car Free Day along Andrássy Avenue, when one of the busiest avenues of Budapest will only be open to pedestrians. The event is usually so popular that hundreds of thousands of people walk along Andrássy Avenue every year to show their support for the environment.

(Ministry of National Development)