The Love London festival (London Sustainability Weeks) was first run on a small scale in 2003 (with about 50 events in one week). In 2004, London 21 received financial support for this work and expanded the event from one to two weeks. The partnership of organisations supported over 350 local events across the city. Since then the festival has run annually each June.
Now in its sixth year Love London will provide over half a million of London residents, workers, visitors and media an opportunity to discover and experience the diversity and creativity of local action and community projects that are working to make the city’s communities more sustainable.
The campaign works not only with local authorities and major campaigning groups, but is unique in its commitment to promote and assist small, community based, initiatives – with a particular emphasis on those which are run by and for residents in areas of high social and economic deprivation.
The core idea is that it can be hard for small projects to get publicity and media coverage on their own due to limited resources and staff time. By working together we are able to provide a stronger story for the press and the public.
Local Authorities are also now actively involved. Most of London's 32 local authorities work with community groups to organise events in their own areas.