Overview
Special days, weeks and months help strengthen cultural awareness, remember historic events, and inspire Albertans to take action or get involved in important causes.
The Special Days Act came into force March 24, 2022, and established this easier, faster process for designating special dates in perpetuity. Dates that were previously recognized through proclamations or acts will continue to be recognized.
Dates can be officially recognized in perpetuity through Ministerial Orders. Organizations may request recognition of dates that hold significance and have a connection to Alberta as long as they follow the guidelines.
Your organization can request a provincial declaration by filling out the online form.
Special days
January
- No special days
February
- Black History Month
- Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation – February 6
- Alberta Family Day – third Monday
- Human Trafficking Awareness Day – February 22
- World Encephalitis Day – February 22
- Heart Month
- Multifocal Motor Neuropathy Awareness Month
March
- Alberta Francophonie Month
- Learn more about Alberta Francophonie Month and Francophone heritage in Alberta.
- World Obesity Day – March 4
- Hellenic Heritage Day – March 25
- Multiple Myeloma Awareness Month
April
- Green Shirt Day – April 7 in Alberta
- Advance Care Planning Day – April 16
- Genocide Remembrance, Condemnation and Prevention Month
- Sikh Heritage Month
- Alberta Get Outdoors Weekend – second weekend
- National Day of Mourning – April 28
- Oncology Nursing Day – First Tuesday in April
April or May
- Holocaust Memorial Day, Yom ha-Shoah – April 18, 2023, May 6, 2024 and April 24, 2025
May
- Asian Heritage Month
- Sexual Violence Awareness Month
- World Lupus Day – May 10
- Community Disability Services Professional Appreciation Week – third Monday in May
- Croatian Heritage Day – May 30
- Drug Awareness Week – second full week of May
- Guillain-Barre Syndrome and Chronic inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy Awareness Month
- Speech and Hearing Month
June
- Philippine Heritage Month
- Italian Heritage Month
- Intergenerational Day – June 1
- Seniors’ Week – first full week in June, Monday to Sunday
- Learn more about Seniors’ Week and the contributions seniors make to Alberta.
- Canadian Armed Forces Day – first Sunday
- Lipedema Awareness Day – June 11
- Polish-Canadian Heritage Day – second Sunday
- Somali Heritage Week – June 25 to July 1
- Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Awareness Day – June 27
- Cavernous Malformation Month
- Stroke Month
July
- Collector Car Appreciation Day – second Friday
August
- Hindu Heritage Month
- Korean Heritage Month
- Pakistani Heritage Month
- Alberta Heritage Day – first Monday
- Alberta Local Food Week – week preceding the third weekend
- Learn more about Alberta Local Food Week and how to support for all things grown, made and harvested in Alberta.
September
- Month of the Artist
- Learn more about Month of the Artist and the valuable contributions artists make to Alberta.
- Mexican Heritage Month
- Vietnamese Heritage Month
- Japanese Heritage Month
- Alberta Day – September 1
- Learn more about Alberta Day.
- Ukrainian-Canadian Heritage Day – September 7
- Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness Day – September 9
- World Sepsis Day – September 13
- Terry Fox Day – second Sunday after labour Day
- Apprenticeship Day – fourth Monday of September
- Consent Awareness Week – third week of September
- Reservists’ Recognition Day – last Saturday
- Alberta Police and Peace Officers’ Memorial Day – last Sunday
- Learn more about Alberta Police and Peace Officers’ Memorial Day and participate in the annual ceremony.
- Life Sciences Week – last week in September
- Day for Truth and Reconciliation – September 30
- Learn more about the Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
- Arthritis Awareness Month
- Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month
October
- Disability Employment Awareness Month
- Learn more about Disability Employment Awareness Month and celebrating people with disabilities in the workplace.
- Dyslexia Awareness Month
- Islamic Heritage Month
- Latin American Heritage Month
- Nigerian Heritage Month
- Day of Older Persons – October 1
- Learn more about Day of Older Persons and celebrating seniors.
- Sisters in Spirit Day – October 4
- Learn more about Sisters in Spirit Day and honouring the memory of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
- World Cerebral Palsy Day – October 6
- World PANS / PANDAS Awareness Day – October 9
- Persons Day
- WinSTEM Week – third week of October
- World Arthritis Day – October 12
November
- Indigenous Disability Awareness Month
- Neuropathy Awareness Day – first Saturday in November
- Women’s Entrepreneurship Day – November 19
- Ukrainian Famine and Genocide (Holodomor) Memorial Day – fourth Saturday
- CPR Awareness Month
December
- No special days
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