Pictured: WESSA members, staff and partners take part in International Cleanup Day
On Saturday, 19 September, learners, volunteers and partners came together with WESSA to mark International Coastal Cleanup Day, turning a shared commitment to the environment into 90 minutes of practical action along the coast.
The beach cleanup brought together WESSA, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Blue Ribbon and Mertech Marine, alongside a group of learners who collected litter from the sand, pebble shoreline and rock pools. Together, they collected 91 bags of waste in just 90 minutes.
The cleanup was also part of WESSA’s centenary year, providing an opportunity to celebrate 100 years of action for nature while encouraging young people to take responsibility for the environment.
Turning responsibility into action
Opening the event, WESSA CEO Cindy-Lee Cloete reflected on what it means to reach 100 years of environmental action.
She reminded those gathered that caring for the environment matters and that protecting it is a responsibility we all share. She thanked the partners and volunteers for taking part, noting that their presence demonstrated a real commitment to the cause.
For WESSA, this sense of shared responsibility is central to its work. Cloete described the work being done today as a legacy for future generations, reminding the learners that WESSA is made up of people caring for the Earth.
She also encouraged the learners to take responsibility and, importantly, to take action.
Learning through doing
There is something powerful about environmental education that happens beyond the classroom.
On the day, learners were not simply learning about the impact of litter on coastal environments; they were actively participating in caring for a coastal space as they walked the shoreline and collected waste.
Pictured above: Learners carrying bags of collected waste along the shoreline, volunteers working across the pebble beach and dune edge, and participants clearing litter from the rock pools
The 91 bags collected in 90 minutes are a tangible reminder of both the scale of the challenge and what can be achieved when people come together around a shared purpose.
A century of caring for the Earth
Pictured: WESSA CEO, Cindy-Lee Cloete, with a young volunteer cutting the centenary cake.
The day ended on a celebratory note, with WESSA staff, partners, volunteers and learners marking the organisation’s 100th year with a centenary cake.
The celebration was a fitting reflection of WESSA’s centenary theme: People Caring for the Earth.
For 100 years, WESSA has worked to connect people with nature through education, advocacy and action. International Coastal Cleanup Day brought that legacy to life in a simple but meaningful way by bringing people together to care for a shared environment and encouraging the next generation to play their part.
The work does not end when the bags are collected.
Every cleanup is also an opportunity to learn, to build awareness and to remind ourselves that protecting the environment is a shared responsibility.
Ninety minutes of action made a visible difference.
More importantly, it gave learners an opportunity to experience what it means to care for the Earth and to recognise that meaningful environmental action starts with all of us.