Every year on 22 February we celebrate World Thinking Day and this year is extra special, because it’s the 100th anniversary! Girlguiding Scotland is part of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) and World Thinking Day is a chance for us to connect with 10 million Girl Guides and Scouts across the whole world.  

This year’s theme is friendship and our international team have put together 10 easy ways to celebrate with your unit: 

Friendship tree: Create a ‘friendship tree’ in your meeting place. Every member writes or draws something special about a friend and adds it to the tree. Discuss what makes a good friend and why these qualities matter. 

Random acts of kindness: As a unit, brainstorm and carry out acts of kindness for others, such as writing thank you notes, organising a clean-up, helping people in the community in need, planting flower boxes or helping other charity groups.  

Friendship tokens: Make and share friendship tokens in your unit or across your community to remind people how important they are. 

International pen pals: Connect with a Guide or Girl Scout unit in another country. Exchange letters, photos, and stories about your guiding experiences and customs. 

World friendship map: Create a map marking countries where Girlguiding exists. Learn about World Thinking Day traditions in at least 3 other countries and share what you discover with your unit.

Special guest: Invite a member of Girlguiding to your meeting who has travelled abroad with guiding. Ask them to tell you about their experiences and how they made international friendships. 

Badge design: Design your own badge or poster to represent 100 years of World Thinking Day and the spirit of friendship. Display it at your meeting place hold a unit-wide competition. 

Girlguiding unit meeting activities: Try out the new Girlguiding UMAs, made in partnership with WAGGS for World Thinking Day 2026. You can download them here: Rainbows penny for your thoughts, Brownies World Centre Wonders, Guides Trefoil Challenge and Rangers Made to share. 

100 year party: Hold a party and play games to celebrate 100 years of World Thinking Day. 

Buy our brand new badge! We’ve created a badge to celebrate international friendship. Why not gift it to your best international guiding friend?