THE organisers of the second Penang World Cleanup Day 2022 are targeting 3,600 volunteers – four times more than the 900 volunteers involved in the inaugural event in 2019.
State Environment and Welfare Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh urged for a collective movement for the upcoming event in Penang to restore a greener and cleaner place we all call home.
While the World Cleanup Day falls on Sept 17, the actual physical cleanup for the Penang World Cleanup Day 2022 will take place on Aug 27 for the schools and Sept 24 for the public.
Phee said the World Cleanup Day is one of the biggest civic movements of our time, uniting 191 countries worldwide for a cleaner planet.
“It is a very important day. That is why we want to send a very strong message to the society.
“Cleaning up is definitely not a forever solution for a cleaner environment if people do not ditch the habit of littering. Let us be responsible for our environment.
“I am proud that Penang state has various green campaigns and policies to reduce waste and to empower our citizens since 2008.
“The state government has not given up its mission to reduce waste and to slowly phase out single-use plastic in Penang as we implemented ‘Waste Segregation at Source Policy’ in 2016 and ‘No Free Plastic Bag’ every Monday back in July 2009 till today.
“Environmental education is important and we will never stop this mission to enable, empower and enrich our people to be part of this change,” Phee told a press conference in Komtar today to announce the upcoming Penang World Cleanup Day 2022.
Phee said Penang’s first cleanup event started nine years ago. It was called the Cleaning Gurney 2013 in which every month, there was a group of active volunteers and communities that were dedicated to beach cleanup activities.
Phee commended Aimpactz Social Enterprise for organising the upcoming cleanup activities, and Penang Green Council (PGC), Penang Island City Council (MBPP) and Seberang Perai City Council (MBSP) for supporting the effort.
Also present at the press conference were PGC general manager Josephine Tan Mei Ling, MBPP environmental health chief assistant Mohd Taufik Junik, MBSP Local Agenda 21 officer Chew Eng Seng, Aimpactz founder Dr Choong Jian Ming, Green Educators’ Workgroup (GREW) chairman Khou Jerome, Panjam Food Rescue community chief Mohanah Rajamanickam and Redo Smart Enterprise representative Xuxan Goh.
Dr Choong said the estimated 3,600 volunteers would descend on 60 hotspots, like beaches, community areas, parks and so on, throughout the state to do waste segregation and waste auditing on the mismanaged waste.
Penang, he said, has countless tangible and intangible treasures but their beauty would be marred if garbage is strewn by the public.
He said for the second Penang World Cleanup Day, they would want to engage different communities, schools, corporations, MNCs and the public to be part of this localised global movement.
“We organise activities with the green project management methodology and strive to be zero-waste in our undertakings.
“Moreover, we also do waste audits which means the volunteers will segregate the mismanaged rubbish, count them, and weigh them. With the data we gather, we then tailor-make better fine-tuned activities in future programmes,” Dr Choong said.
He said they would also hold three rounds of leadership training for those who want to be a leader. The trainings are on Aug 14 (SJKC Union), Sept 4 (MBPP MakerSpace at Balik Pulau) and Sept 10 (Dewan Haji Ahmad Badawi in Butterworth).
Josephine Tan said the Penang Green Council always gives 100 per cent support to such initiatives.
“We need to discard waste properly; and recycle what can be recycled.
“What we are doing is not a new thing. Several NGOs have helped keep the environment clean during their weekend activities,” Tan said.
The organisers welcome sponsors and those who want to be leaders or volunteers. They can register at: www.aimpactz.com to be part of this localised global movement.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Law Suun Ting and courtesy of Penang Green Council