As a part of back to school activity, we were taken to a nearby beach to not only indulge in the recreational activities but at the same time to fulfill the social responsibility of cleaning the beach which was covered with heaps of garbage. Millions of pounds of trash is found on beaches on a monthly basis so as an institution it was important for us to take an initiative to contribute in resolving this environmental issue on a local basis.
LO-5
Students were divided into groups based on their grade and section so that we can cover a wider area. Each group was given several garbage bags so that we collect all the litter at one place. As we were in a group it was important to demonstrate teamwork to get the most out of this initiative. Being in a group helped us to collect more amount of garbage that we would have collected if it was an individual task also we were switching responsibilities for example if one member was picking up the garbage and the other member was holding the garbage bag for the first ten minutes then for the next ten minutes the responsibility would switch this helped us to break the monotony of the task and prevented us from being tired. Since the responsibilities were divided we could focus on our individual task which made the work faster. Seeing each other showcase so much dedication towards the task motivated the other team members to work harder. Because the groups were divided randomly we got to work with people who we don’t usually interact with helped us to move beyond our comfort zone and allowed us to know new people and build trust. It also allowed us to resolve conflicts better as there were few members who just sat back and enjoyed while others were working so as a group we decided to exclude them from the team and requested teachers to add members who were more serious about this task. The members who were excluded from the garbage collecting process were later asked to separate the dry and the wet waste this further kept them engaged.
LO 2
During this task, there were several challenges faced in this activity like it was conducted during summers when the weather in our city becomes extremely hot and humid. Because of the weather, we got tired easily and we had to take breaks which wasted a lot of time which could have been utilized in collecting more litter. To combat this problem we made strategies like we used to take alternate breaks for example if one member feels extremely tired then that member will take a break first and the other members will continue working and visa versa so that the work doesn’t stop at any point. We tried to avoid long breaks and be as efficient as possible. There were some members of the group who were not willing to contribute because they were concerned about the hygiene issues. So I used my problem-solving skill and decided to divide the work duties so the people who were not comfortable in picking up the garbage were asked to hold the garbage bags and the others members who were comfortable in collecting the garbage would continue doing their work. Resolving all the issues and problems helped me develop problem-solving skills. As we are not used to doing such tasks we felt uncomfortable initially because there were all kinds of litter right from plastic to food waste to alcohol bottles to dirty diapers and sanitary pads and also some of it was stinking terribly but as we filled a few bags we felt more comfortable. We learned to adapt ourselves to the new surroundings and to move out of our comfort zone and be flexible.
LO4- All the challenges like the weather, the smell, and inter-group conflicts made it difficult for us to complete the task. There were many times when we just felt like giving up but it was important for us to stay committed and show perseverance to the task so that we can achieve our goal of collecting as much garbage from the beach as possible. Seeing everyone work right from teachers to support staff to juniors motivated us to stay committed.
LO 6
Most of the beaches across India are facing a garbage crisis with environmentalist estimating almost 100 tons of trash that is dumped on beaches at any given moment. One of the main cause of this crisis is the inadequate management of sewage and garbage. Ingestion of ocean trash Provides false sense to the marine animals of being full once swallowed, which leads to starvation and it also becomes lodged in animals windpipes, cutting off airflow and causing suffocation. Trash in the ocean kills more than one million seabirds and thousands of marine mammals and turtles each year through ingestion and entanglement. Based on the statistics mentioned we can identify that trash on the beaches is a serious threat to the environment and it is important for the government as well as citizens to take necessary action thus we as a school decided to take an initiative to combat this environmental concern.
