Project Managers - Zara Pardiwalla; Karine Rassool; Natasha Burian
TOP has been conducting monthly, educational coastal clean-ups of beaches and/or waterways across the Seychelles islands since April 2017; engaging an average of 30-50 participants from community groups, non-governmental organisations, schools, and businesses during each clean-up. TOP clean-ups guarantee a diverse participation of people of all ages, and particular participation of people of the locality in which the clean up is taking place, as a means to promote diversity, inclusivity, and community ownership. Our clean-ups are short (2 hours including post clean sorting), educational, action-packed, family-friendly, fun, and rewarding! Participants get first-hand exposure to the issue of marine debris and a deeper understanding of the value and benefit of individualistic action to reverse the “throw away” culture of modern society. As well as stopping debris entering the oceans, our clean-ups simultaneously remove unsightly debris from Seychelles’ beaches and/or waterways that is detrimental to the ‘pristine’ slogan used to advertise Seychelles as a tourism destination.
Data collection is a key component of our clean-ups. We promote citizen science by working with participants to categorise and record the amount of debris collected. With the growing interest to collect data on marine debris as the issue is pushed to the top of the global agenda, the data collected has already proved useful in informing other TOP projects and has been shared, by request, with the Department of Environment and the Land Waste Management Agency (LWMA). For more information on TOP's marine litter monitoring programme, click here.
By combining education and action on the issue, TOP aims, through its clean-ups, to spark positive changes in consumer habits and to promote anti-littering behavior.
In 2018, TOP put on 36 clean-ups, on 7 islands, engaged 1300+ participants and collected 5+ tons of marine litter. On 15th September, to commemorate World CleanUp Day, TOP in collaboration with LWMA and the Seychelles Sustainable Tourism Foundation (SSTF) hosted the “Seychelles’ Biggest Beach Clean-Up”, which was the biggest NGO and private sector collaboration in Seychelles and saw the participation of over 700 people cleaning 27 beaches across 7 islands and collecting over 3.5 tons of rubbish in the space of one hour (supported by the GEF Small Grants Programme and the Environment Trust Fund).
Our clean-ups
2019
- November - Beau Vallon, Anse Royale, Grand Police
- August - Beau Vallon, Anse Royale, Grand Police
- June - World Oceans Day Clean-Ups - Beau Vallon, Anse Royale, Grand Police
- May - Grand Anse
- April - Anse Royale
- March - Seychelles Outer Islands Clean-Up
- March - Au Cap
- February - Au Cap
2018
- December - Beau Vallon (Seybrew Slow Turtle Cider launch)
- November - Beau Vallon (Seychelles Ocean Festival)
- September - Grand Police (Seychelles Tourism Board)
- September - Seychelles' Biggest Beach Clean Up
- August - Anse Madge, Praslin
- June - Au Cap
- May - Anse Gaulette
- April – Anse Forbans
- March – Anse Royale
- February – Amitie (Praslin)
2017
- October - Beau Vallon
- September - North East Point
- August – Anse Forbans
- July – Grand Police
- June – Barbarons
- June – Cap Ternay
- May – Au Cap
- April – Intendance
Have you attended one of our clean-ups?
We are always looking for ways to improve our clean-ups so would greatly appreciate if could spare 5 minutes to complete our feedback form. Thank you!
