International Access to Information Day 2025

International Access to Information Day is being celebrated this year on Sunday 28 September 2025. The day advocates for citizens around the world to have access to the information they need to make informed choices about their lives. International Access to Information Day was first celebrated on 28 September 2002 when organisations from around the world formed the Freedom of Information Advocates (FOIA Network). Each year has a dedicated theme. This year’s theme is “Ensuring access to environmental information in the Digital Age”. 

In a world where we are seeing the effects of climate change and global warming, climate anxiety is very real. International Access to Information Day is a timely reminder to educate ourselves on environmental issues. When we have access to environmental information we can take positive steps to do things like reduce our carbon footprint and lessen our impact on the natural environment. We can also learn what governments around the world are doing to address the issue of climate change. 

International Access to Information Day emphasises how important it is to understand cross-border environmental action in an increasingly digital world. Global sharing of information means that scientific data can become discoverable and gives us an opportunity to engage with the facts about climate change and other environmental issues. This theme also stresses the important role of digital technologies and open data platforms in allowing global citizens access to information about the environment. 

Here in Queensland the Solomon Lecture is held each year at State Library of Queensland to celebrate International Access to Information Day. This year the event is being held on Thursday 25 September 2025. The guest speaker is Sheree Marris, a marine biologist, award-winning science communicator, and adjunct at James Cook University. Sheree will talk about the crucial role of digital information in sharing knowledge and understanding with a focus on coral reefs as a metaphor for collaboration, saving eco systems and also public trust. 

You can register to attend the Solomon Lecture or watch the livestream (which you do not need to register for). International Access to Information Day is a vital opportunity to think about how digital information can help us to address issues of climate change and engage with environmental data to increase our knowledge of the challenges our world is facing.