Community Service - AWA Beach Cleanup

by Ioana Dumea

For most of us, the beach is a place to escape our worries and make ourselves happier, healthier, and overall, more emotionally balanced. Thus, it is one of the great sorrows of mankind that one of the places we love the most ends up getting polluted with so many things we no longer need.

Taking responsibility for the trash we individually produce is the first step in minimizing the negative effects we collectively leave on our seashores. Taking part in beach cleanups is a wonderful way to put our consumption habits into perspective and to make a small but significant contribution towards a cleaner and safer environment for us all.

Hyejin Taylor, Clarissa Choo and Marta Ferrer Lubeck cleared nine bags of trash from the beach

With those thoughts in mind, the AWA Community Service Group has created a monthly beach cleanup event for its members. Held during the first or the second week of each month, the beach cleanup is organized through Singapore’s National Environment Agency, and will regularly take members to the different beaches of Singapore in need of a little tender loving care.

For those members wanting to join, all that is needed is a commitment of a couple of hours a month, tongs, gloves (if desired) and a meticulous eye. The organizer will provide biodegradable bags and disinfectant wipes for the entire group and will make sure that all members adhere to the Singaporean government’s vaccine and gathering safety measures. A glance at the photos of the first AWA beach cleanup held on September 14 at Pasir Ris Beach gives you an idea of some of the results. For any questions, please contact the Community Chair, Beach Cleanup, Ioana Dumea at commservice@awasingapore.org.