Imagine running along your favorite route. Beautiful trees all around you, the roads are amazing, fresh air to breathe and everything around looks so beaut…wait, plastic covers and litter all around. Not so nice anymore, right?
This Gandhi Jayanti, thousands of people around Bangalore and MojoMakers of RentoMojo, ran for a cause—a cleaner city, a cleaner country, a cleaner world! Our aim was to create awareness among the public and encourage more people to keep the environment clean and plastic-free.
What is a plog run?
Well, to put it in simple words, a plog run is when you stop to pick up litter while you run. This was a concept that was started by the Swedes. ‘Plocka upp’ means ‘pick up’ in Swedish. Therefore, picking up litter while jogging = PLOGGING! What better way to log the miles and get a cleaner environment, right?
Ready. Set. Go.
Before starting the run, the ploggers received a ‘plog kit’ which consisted of a mask, a pair of gloves and an apron to ensure proper health and hygiene. This 3 km run started at 7.30 AM from RentoMojo Headquarters, Koramangala. Our first pitstop was at St.Anthony’s Friary. The second pitstop was at Dairy Circle and then back to RentoMojo Headquarters. This run was a total win-win situation considering all of us got to sweat it out while creating a cleaner environment.
What did we find?
Tons and tons of litter in just the 3 km stretch! It was unbelievable that such a tiny stretch in the city can have so much litter.
But, a few items, in particular, were found in large numbers. This just means, a lot of us throw these things on the road without realizing that we are littering the city or maybe we are just being plain ignorant. We have to start making a conscious effort to stop polluting the environment. Especially with things like:
- Chocolate/snack wrappers
- Bills
- Tissues
- Plastic bottles
- Plastic bags
- Tin cans
- Cardboard boxes
- Newspapers
- Cigarette butts
We also found some weird/uncommon things like sunglasses, love letters and some other items that cannot be mentioned here!
The finish line
We had an Instagram-themed photo booth set up at the end of the track, where every one of us clicked fun pictures and posted on social media with #MojoPlogRun. But, there’s more! We also got these super cool badges, T-shirts, and medals for completing the 3KM plog run.
In the midst of all the fun, this plog run made us aware of the litter situation. It just was an add-on that we came back with a satisfying feeling that we contributed a tiny bit to our society.
What did the plog run teach us?
- We shouldn’t wait for an event to plog or do anything to contribute to our society.
- We can make this a weekend activity with our friends, colleagues or family members.
- All of us need to come together to make our city a better place.
- We have to make a conscious effort to stop polluting our environment.
- The least we can do is create awareness.
- Cleaner environment = healthier us!