Clean Up - Campaigns 2023

We reported on this in our newsletter on 20 April 2023: Waste that is not disposed of properly, but simply thrown into nature, pollutes the environment - such as the soil - and endangers our wildlife. For this reason, we have encouraged our employees to get together and organise a clean-up at their premises.

Over the last few weeks, four clean-ups have taken place in Cologne, Passau, Heidelberg and Neu-Isenburg.

The clean-ups from my point of view:

I have seen several pictures of clean ups where six or more full and large bags were collected. I don't know where it was or how many days it was collected, but I can tell you this much: it wasn't at our collection points. We hardly found anything in Cologne and Passau.

In Köln – beim Decksteiner Weiher – hatten wir ein Konstrukt aus Reifen und Baumstamm gefunden, bei dem wir uns nicht sicher waren, ob es Müll oder ein Kunstwerk war. Wir haben es stehen gelassen, da wir vermeiden wollten, dass am nächsten Tag in der Zeitung steht: „Hooligans zerstören wertgeschätztes Kunstwerk.“… 😉

In Passau – bei Hals – gab es entlang der Ilz für uns nicht viel einzusammeln. Stattdessen durften wir Frösche und kleine Fische entdecken und einen herrlichen Tag bei Sonnenschein genießen.

In Heidelberg – an der Thingstätte – wird dieser Ort anscheinend des Öfteren von Verliebten oder Hochzeitspaaren aufgesucht, die ihre Liebe zelebrieren. Grundsätzlich ein romantischer Gedanke, den ich nachvollziehen kann. Leider war dadurch der Boden an manchen Stellen mit unzähligen kleineren und größeren runden Lamettastücken übersät. Diese narzistische Ignoranz hat mich traurig gemacht. Schließlich ist es möglich einen schönen Moment zu erleben, ohne seine Umwelt zu verschmutzen.

In Neu Isenburg – an der Oberscheinstiege – gab es einen größeren und schweren Fund: ein Teil eines Waschbeckens vielleicht – auf jeden Fall ein Keramikbrocken. Aber in meiner Erinnerung bleibt der Wald als Hundeparadies mit Besitzern, die das Konzept der Hundekotbeutel nicht ganz richtig verstanden haben: sie haben die Hinterlassenschaften ihres Hundes in Plastikbeutel befördert, und diese dann einfach in der Natur liegen gelassen…

Conclusion

All in all, it was always a pleasant shared experience that was perfectly rounded off by the activities afterwards - such as the escape room or going out to eat. Another positive aspect was the realisation that there is not as much rubbish lying around in nature as I had initially assumed - or did we not hit the right places? I felt the activity was an important contribution, because no matter how small a piece of rubbish is, it can potentially release toxins into nature or be fatal to an animal, either because it eats the rubbish or gets caught or injured in it.

If we can find an opportunity to organise Clean Ups again next year, I would be delighted!

I wonder whether it is now practical to always take a bit of rubbish with you when you go hiking or walking in the countryside.
Of course, it wouldn't be sustainable to buy a roll of rubbish bags specifically for this purpose. Then it occurred to me that you (unfortunately) always have leftover plastic or paper (packaging) bags when you go shopping. Instead of throwing them away immediately, you can use them to pick up 3 or 4 items from the floor and transport them to the nearest rubbish bin. You should also have a glove with you for such purposes. What do you think? Can you imagine trying this out? I still have a few washable gloves from the Clean Ups that I would be happy to pass on. Just let me know 🙂

Finally, I would like to mention that everyone who took part will be entered into the prize draw in October. The winner will be able to choose a pair of Antonio Verde glasses: https://www.avocadostore.de/brands/antonio-verde