What is World Heart Day and how can I get involved?

Updated

World Heart Day is an annual awareness campaign held on 29 September, led by the World Heart Federation (WHF). The next edition is 29 September 2026, under the theme "Heart disease can hide in plain sight: don't miss a beat." Anyone can take part — you don't need a medical background or membership. The main routes in are downloading free digital assets, sharing a heart health story, and taking the World Heart Day quiz.

What World Heart Day is for

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the world's leading cause of death, killing 20 million people each year and accounting for 33% of all deaths, according to WHF. World Heart Day exists to raise awareness of that toll and push prevention, screening and care up the agenda.

It sits inside WHF's wider World Heart Vision 2030, which aims to reduce CVD deaths and improve heart health globally by uniting heart health experts, policymakers and advocates.

How to get involved

WHF lists three starting points for individuals:

  • Download the free digital assets — campaign materials you can use and share in your own channels.
  • Share your heart health story — personal accounts are used to put a human face on CVD risk and prevention.
  • Take the World Heart Day quiz — a short way to test and spread awareness of heart health.

WHF frames these as a way to "join our mission," and its stated goal is that support can help prevent millions of premature deaths from CVD.

If you want to go further

Beyond the individual actions above, WHF runs a global community of 200+ member organisations that share knowledge and implement evidence-based programmes. If you represent an organisation rather than acting as an individual, that community is the relevant entry point.

There are also in-person events tied to the campaign. For 2026, WHF lists a World Heart Day – Geneva Celebration on 23 September 2026 at Stade de Genève, built around the fixture Servette FC vs Olympique Lyonnais in the UEFA Women's Championship League, under the banner "Football For Healthier Hearts."

Related WHF work worth knowing

If World Heart Day is your entry point, these are the adjacent activities WHF points to:

Activity What it is
World Heart Report 2026 WHF's annual flagship report; the 2026 edition focuses on congenital heart disease
World Congress of Cardiology 2026 Global cardiovascular community meeting, 8–10 October, Rio de Janeiro
2nd World Congress on Rheumatic Heart Disease Experts, advocates and people living with RHD, in Perth, Western Australia
Roadmap on cardiac rehabilitation A pathway to lifelong cardiovascular health
World Heart Summit International event spanning policy, advocacy, science and innovation
World Heart Observatory Described as the first global data hub for cardiovascular disease

WHF also publishes a podcast; a recent episode covers lipid guidelines and global cardiovascular prevention.

Practical notes

  • Date to remember: 29 September each year; the 2026 campaign is already announced.
  • Cost: the campaign assets are described as free digital downloads. WHF's site also offers a separate email updates subscription — that is a mailing list, not a requirement for taking part in World Heart Day.
  • Language: WHF's site is published in English (en-GB), so campaign materials are likely English-first; check the asset pack itself if you need another language.
  • Timing: if you want to run something locally, the Geneva event is on 23 September, slightly ahead of the official 29 September date — so early-to-mid September is a reasonable window to prepare.

The simplest first step is to download the digital assets and take the quiz; both are designed for people with no prior involvement in CVD advocacy.