A clean-up and waste management project by youths

‘Cleanliness begins with me’—with this great thought, Casper Foundation and a group of its volunteers from Casper - BRAC University took on a clean-up initiative ‘The Project Think Clean - Waste Reduction Campaign’ at the BRAC University campus on  November 14, 2017. It aimed to clean the BRAC University campus area and promote awareness about waste management, a culture of sustainability, and motivate students and every individual to take environmental responsibility.

The volunteers gathered at the well-known ‘Bot Tola’ spot on campus and started off with an awareness programme with shopkeepers and students who were at the location. The volunteers used trash bags to collect as much trash as possible to make the campus area clean and create awareness about waste management among people, specially the shopkeepers and students.

The volunteers spoke with different tong owners who were available at the area during the clean up. Shockingly enough, the tong owners told them that despite they have a good waste management system and are additionally utilising waste canisters or bins to toss all the junks, yet the customers, students and people visiting the area litters the place with tissue papers, cigarette butts, parcels and undesirable questions around the zone. It has been found that the wastes that are being produced by the shopkeepers are properly thrown away at the end of the day, nonetheless, what still remains are the waste made by the customers and individuals going to these bustling zones. When the customers and students were asked how they feel walking and eating in this dirty area and why they are not using bins to throw the waste, they rather ignored the fact and said it does not matter to them.

Taufiq uz Zaman, CEO and founder of Casper Foundation, said, ‘This effort might seem small and insignificant, but I believe it is the start of something big. We can see a significant change in the outlook of our targeted area and we have received a very positive response from all of whom we have spoken to. Yet, the problem is much deeper than we thought. The effort needs to start from each and every student, faculty and visitors of this area to stop loitering.’

It is our responsibility to keep our city clean. An initiative like this should not be taken by only one campus but all the campuses in the country. If all the campuses take responsibility to keep their campus area clean, then a bigger area can be covered together. Every citizen must take initiative of their own and responsibly use the waste bins. Secondly, a mass awareness among all the people need to be created about proper waste management and not litter on streets and footpaths with papers, packets and cigarette butts.

The writer is a management trainee of Casper Foundation and a student at BRAC University. 

She can be reached at  [email protected]