15 May: what is celebrated today

International Day of Families

The International Day of Families, proclaimed by the UN and observed since 1994, holds a mirror up to the word “family” to remind us that it is not a single form, but a living reality. The history of this day began to be written in the 1980s, when the international community started to see the family as a fundamental social unit: it is there that the language of affection is learned, the first rules of coexistence are tried out and the foundations of trust are built — with mistakes and successes.

In times of demographic change, migration, new structures and demanding working rhythms, the family is redefined without ceasing to fulfil its essential function: being there. The recent motto has stressed precisely this, the need for family-oriented policies for sustainable development, as though the future depended — in part — on what happens around a table, in a timely conversation, in a support network that prevents someone from falling into the void.

International Conscientious Objection Day

15 May also remembers those who decided to say “no” when obedience was the easy option. International Conscientious Objection Day celebrates the resistance of conscientious objectors for peace and their determination not to take part in armed war, a commemoration historically linked to movements promoted by the War Resisters’ International since the 1980s.

Conscientious objection, understood as the right not to comply with an order that violates ethical or religious principles, remains a relevant conversation. It is not an abstract gesture: at different moments in history it meant prison, exile and stigma. Remembering it today means asking, without grandiloquence, what we do when law and conscience collide, and how much courage it takes to uphold an unpopular decision.

International Tuberous Sclerosis Day

There are rare diseases that bear a double difficulty: medical complexity and social silence. International Tuberous Sclerosis Day seeks to break that invisibility by sharing information about an uncommon genetic disorder that can cause benign tumours in vital organs such as the brain, kidneys, heart or lungs, and can manifest very differently in each person.

The date recalls the importance of early diagnosis and research. For many families, the journey begins with scattered symptoms, endless consultations and incomplete answers. Naming tuberous sclerosis in the calendar also means offering company: the certainty that behind every case there are communities fighting for treatments, resources and a dignified life.

International Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome Day

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is another name that often arrives late: sometimes years pass before someone manages to give form to a series of pains, injuries, fatigue or hypermobility. This day seeks to raise awareness of a group of hereditary disorders related to collagen, which affect connective tissues and can manifest in the skin, joints, blood vessels and other organs.

Celebrating is not the exact word; rather, it is about making it visible. Talking about Ehlers-Danlos is remembering that not everything that hurts can be seen, that not every fragility is weakness, and that medicine — when it listens properly — can change a life: naming what is happening is the first step towards caring for it.

World Mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) Day

Mucopolysaccharidoses are rare hereditary metabolic diseases in which the body cannot break down certain compounds (mucopolysaccharides or glycosaminoglycans), which accumulate in cells and alter the functioning of different systems. 15 May is dedicated to raising awareness, supporting affected families and promoting research and treatment.

Behind those initials lie life journeys marked by consultations, therapies, adaptation and constant learning. This day serves as a platform for sharing stories and resources, but also for demanding equity: that access to diagnosis and care should not depend on geographical chance or the level of information, because time counts differently in rare diseases.

International Virtual Assistant Day

The third Friday in May is International Virtual Assistant Day; in 2026 it falls on 15 May. It recognises a professional profile born and raised with the internet: professionals who, remotely, organise diaries, manage administrative tasks and support the operations of companies and ventures with quiet efficiency.

In an era that redrew the office and mixed home with work, the virtual assistant symbolises a cultural change: trust as infrastructure, technology as a tool and flexibility as a value. Celebrating this day is accepting that the world of work no longer lives only in a physical place, and that many mechanisms function from screens we do not see.

Bike to Work Day

The third Friday in May is also associated in many countries with Bike to Work Day, an invitation to turn the everyday commute into an act of health and city life. Cycling to work reduces emissions, eases traffic and improves physical wellbeing; it also transforms the way we view urban space: we seek safe routes, respect rules and share.

It is not a romantic gesture: it is a possible practice that depends on infrastructure, road-safety education and personal decision. Pedalling, even for one day only, works as a small statement: mobility can be more humane, less noisy, more breathable.

National Pisco Day (Chile)

In Chile, 15 May is National Pisco Day, a nod to a distilled spirit deeply rooted in popular culture. More than a drink, pisco is a social symbol: it appears at celebrations, family toasts, shared recipes, in that Latin American way of giving everyday life an air of festivity.

Like every culinary tradition, its value lies in memory. A flavour can hold a history, a landscape, a way of coming together. This day is not only about consumption: it is about identity, heritage and how culture is also passed on through what is served at the table.

World Salt Awareness Week

From 12 to 18 May, World Salt Awareness Week continues, insisting on an uncomfortable idea: much of the salt we consume is “hidden” in processed products. The campaign proposes specific habits — reading labels, cooking more, choosing fresh foods — to reduce the excess associated with cardiovascular risks.

Sometimes prevention resembles a change of pace: less haste when shopping, more attention to what is on the plate. And over time, that becomes a way of caring for those who live with us.

United Nations Global Road Safety Week

At the same time, from 12 to 18 May, United Nations Global Road Safety Week is observed. The aim is to reduce traffic deaths and injuries through education, infrastructure, enforcement and a cultural change: respecting speed limits, protecting the most vulnerable and designing cities that do not force people to choose between moving around and surviving.

Road safety is a shared responsibility: pedestrians, cyclists, drivers and authorities. On a day devoted to the family, the message becomes more direct: every decision in the street has consequences at home.