Hello Local Guides,
April 22nd is celebrated around the world as Earth Day. But today, we really need to ask ourselves, why should we celebrate Earth Day at all?
In my understanding, just like a mother doesn’t differentiate between her children, our Earth too continues to generously offer us its countless blessings , clean air, water, fertile land, oceans filled with marine life, and countless hidden treasures, always inviting us to discover and benefit from them.
Yes, we are benefiting from it, but at the same time, we are harming this great mother. Imagine if a mother gives food to her child, and the child responds by hitting her , what would you think of such a person?
Sadly, that’s who we’ve become , taking from one hand and harming with the other.
What’s the solution?
The only solution is to awaken awareness in every individual. Just like we don’t limit our love for parents to just one day because every day should be Mother’s and Father’s Day , in the same way, as @ErmesT said, “Everyday Is Earth Day.”
But since April 22 is recognized internationally as Earth Day, we decided to contribute a small effort from Pakistan. We chose April 8 to visit Halk’s Bay Beach in Karachi for a Beach Cleaning and Awareness Walk.
Although not many people could join me, I’m grateful that @DrFoodieOfficial Rizwan Shah showed up to support this noble cause and boost my spirits.
Our meeting point was Bilal Restaurant in Shershah, and we both reached there at about the same time early in the morning, so we could finish in time to head to our respective jobs.
From Shershah, we rode our bikes to Halks Bay near Turtle Beach , a 20/25 minute journey. Despite being so early, there were already quite a few visitors and cars at the beach, which was great for visibility , it meant people were there to witness our efforts.
As expected, the beach was littered with piles of waste left by visitors from the previous holiday. The garbage included chips wrappers, thermocol plates, diapers, plastic bags, shoes, sandals, and more , way beyond what we had imagined.
We spoke to a local hut owner there, who was happy to see someone taking action. He said he wished all visitors would take their trash back with them. And if not, they should at least gather it in a bag and hand it over to the locals, who would dispose of it properly. That way, the beach and marine life , which is a livelihood source for them , could remain protected. He also told us that locals clean the beach every week, so that visitors don’t turn away after seeing trash. Clean surroundings help keep their small businesses like hut rentals and food stalls running.
We had brought along cloth bags for trash collection. While we couldn’t clean the entire beach, we made a symbolic impact , enough for onlookers to receive our message.
We hope those who saw us understood this message, and that at least 50 or 60 of them choose not to repeat the careless behavior of past visitors.
These beach cleaning drives are symbolic campaigns. Through them, we try to send a message , to ourselves, our friends, and everyone watching , that we are not the only species on this planet. Even if we harm ourselves through carelessness, at least we shouldn’t harm other living beings created by God.
Whenever we visit a beach, park, or recreational spot, we should feel it’s our human and national duty to keep it clean. It doesn’t require much effort.
This awareness needs to be awakened in every individual.
We concluded the meetup with a delicious breakfast of puri, chana, halwa, and doodh patti chai, which doubled the joy of the event.
This meetup is part of the 7th anniversary of #LocalGuidesCleanTheWorld by @ErmesT , Earth Day/Month celebrations, Google Maps’ 20th birthday, Local Guides’ 10th anniversary, and also supports @NareshDarji’s global campaign, Celebrating 10 Years of Local Guides: Let’s Connect and Contribute.
This meetup is part of the 7th anniversary of #LocalGuidesCleanTheWorld by @ErmesT , Earth Day/Month celebrations, Google Maps’ 20th birthday, Local Guides’ 10th anniversary, and also supports @NareshDarji’s global campaign, Celebrating 10 Years of Local Guides: Let’s Connect and Contribute.
Let’s come together and make a difference—Let’s Clean the World!
