We are slowly forming part of a generation that cares less and less about making a difference and more and more about accepting what is; change is a foreign concept to many and most times we are our biggest obstacles. So when we hear about people that don’t just speak the word of change but undertake the act of making a difference, we Durbanites get all excited with butterflies and all stuff that breathes excitement.
Cue. Enter lead KZN Beach Cleanup.
This well needed initiative started in June 2011 where a small group of friends decided they would embark on the ‘action’ part of making a difference and together they performed their first beach cleanup. After spreading the message over their social media platforms, they received a very positive response and decided to conduct the cleanup every month. The mission was focused mainly on Durban beaches until recently (to be precise the end of 2013) when they decided to broaden their spectrum and go beyond boundaries, hence their upgrade to ‘KZN Beach Cleanup’. Natalie Gorven, a key member from the team enthusiastically expressed the motivation behind the upgraded name change, “this way we could spread the scope outside of just the main Durban beaches”. This Easter saw the best ever turnout since the conceptualization of the initiative where there were more than 40 volunteers at the KZN beach cleanup, held at Beach Mangroves in Riverside. The long weekend brought a high spirited turn out at the monthly KZN beach cleanup with the highest ever collection of trash equating to a wonderful 531kgs. Durbanite were proud to donate a total of R1111.60 toward this initiative by providing refreshments and rubber gloves, these were part of the Zombie Run 2013 proceeds and every little bit counts towards a better Durban and beyond!
Cue. Enter the one with the excuses.
It’s so easy to become involved in the idea of wanting to be a part of something so positive and inspiring and not do anything about it. I am first to say that I have played victim to this many times and Natalie made sure to put it simply and in perspective when she responded to my little excuse laden speech filled with ‘well I’ve always wanted to do something like this but…’ and said, “well you could just do that, or you could just go and start picking up dirt!”. At that moment I made the conscious decision to stop being the one with the excuses. So I made my first step and picked up some litter and believe me when I say it was extremely fulfilling and it was fun, sinking and slipping on mud never felt so good (no sarcasm intended pure fun was all it was)! Watching families engage in the act of picking up litter was just a new way of looking at #FamilyTime. The best and worst part was it was interesting to see what dirt washes up onto the beach. The group collected trash that ranged from a bath basin to a truck tyre to a car bumper… this was just some of the dirt that shocked my shoes off (literally)! It was interesting because it told a story but even more than that it was so aggravating to see that people just don’t dispose of their trash in the proper way. If we were not given the proper means of disposal, which we are, I would understand. It seriously just takes someone using the refuse system correctly to avoid some of the pollution that our environment is facing. Just as it’s so easy to enjoy the beach, it’s just as easy to keep it clean! So let’s pledge toward a better tomorrow by keeping it clean or as the KZN Beach Clean Up put it: “Our Future Is A Shore Thing”. The KZN Beach Cleanup happens once a month between 9am to 11am on the third Saturday of each month. More information can be sought out on the teams Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/KznBeachCleanup