It can be a fun day at the beach, but not when the ground is not cared for and cluttered with trash. Continuous litter causes concern for all marine life and our world's future. YES alumni Renalda Lwilla (YES 2013-2014, hosted by AYUSA in Colton, OR) and Marco Marco (YES 2012-2013, hosted by PAX in Cedar Rapids, IA) wanted to help clean the Msasni Beach area in Tanzania, but they needed more volunteers to really make a difference. The alumni reached out to the Tulee Yatima Tanzania Orphanage (TUYATA) and brought 22 young people to the beach to help clean the area as well as teach them about the harmful effects of littering and the importance of community service.

The volunteers were really looking forward to having the young people help because many of them had never been to the beach and were very excited to see it for the first time. By bringing them together, the volunteers wanted to show them a hands-on way to keep their surroundings clean. Even though cleaning isn’t always fun, they made sure the young people both learned from the experience and had a good time. After just two hours, the group collected 100 kilograms of waste. The volunteers celebrated their hard work by enjoying a swim at the freshly cleaned beach. 

Before recycling the waste, the volunteers used each of the different kinds of waste in a demonstration for the youth. Mr. Abdi Mikulu from Nipe Fagio (a local civil society organization focused on improving the environment) showed the group how to sample waste and separate the garbage into different bags for recycling. The name “Nipe Fagio” translates to “give me the broom” in Swahili. He showed everyone that the products that harm sea life the most come from everyday products like bottles and cans. It was a valuable lesson in the importance of reducing waste and recycling. At the end of the day, all volunteers shared a meal while enjoying the freshly-cleaned beach area.

The volunteers truly believe they can continue making a difference by cleaning beaches along the Tanzanian coastline. This was the third beach they had cleaned in the past two years and they have plans to help at more beaches in the future. With more volunteers, the group strongly believes that they can further their progress and have a bigger impact. They would also love to continue working with the orphanage in any way in the future. One of the volunteers Abdi Maculate said afterward, “There is more to be done, but the little we did matters and that is something special.”