[FESTIVAL] Beach cleanup

[Clara116]

Our Airbnb Host Club Group in Pensacola was planning another Meet Up/Clean Up  April 16th at one of the many beach areas that is unfortunately continually overpowered with litter. We have some of the most beautiful beaches in the world in our area! But it takes many of us working hard at volunteering to keep them clean and beautiful due to once again this awful “throw away” thinking/lifestyle/mentality of littering - just unconsciously tossing out. It's a wonderful opportunity to do something really important for our area, meet other hosts, share tips, hacks and also be outside in the wonderful sunshine. 

There’s a group of homeless folks that live in this area where we will be cleaning up so I’ve included a few pics of the area last week. It will be much worse when we arrive this Saturday to clean it up. Another very cool thing is the Visitor Center is right at this location so Hosts will be able to pick up loads of awesome maps, guides, local info for their Airbnb guests all free for the taking. I’m grateful that we are joining forces to make a difference. Hoping the word will spread to other hosts and the leaders in their communities - this effort cost only a little of our time but the rewards are priceless.

[Emilie]

@Clara116 I love this initiative, thanks for telling us a bit more about it! Are you thinking of continuing to do this monthly/regularly with your Host Club?

It's definitely a fantastic way to spend some time together while make a difference. Although there are no beaches around here to cleanup, I did something similar with a few colleagues, including @Katie and @Quincy, last Summer in a park. It was great fun, and I do wonder what other similar activities we could participate in ... your post gave me some much needed inspiration, thank you. ☺️

[Clara116]

@Emilie thanks for your kind words. Yes my husband and I have been involved in this clean up for several years now and are always hoping to encourage others to join in. It's a perfect setting to connect and share while outside doing something for the good of the community.

[Felicity11]

Great article @Clara116 

We are regular beach clean up members at our local beaches. Its great to hear more about your beach clean up group. I think we will try and run one of these in Sydney as one of our meet ups.. Great way to chat connect and do something worthwhile at the same time.   Incidentally I took my parents to the beach today for morning tea and afterwards we walked along the beach and I picked up all the rubbish I could find. My mother understood but my father didn't understand at first what I was doing.  Also interesting to note that so far the beaches in New Zealand that we have encountered have been cleaner than the harbor beaches in Sydney !

[Clara116]

@Felicity11 thanks for your kind response. Also, lovely to hear of you also picking up at your beaches and showing your folks what you are made of. Also, interesting to read about your father - like him many folks just don't get it at first - "picking up after others?" I too have such ideas/notions in some of my family. For many of us it's JUST the right thing to do. So we of course do it. good on you!

I'm not really surprised about New Zealand beaches being cleaner - the reaction and response during the beginning of covid showed me that New Zealand didn't mess around. So perhaps its not tolerated as much as in other places. Just my hunch, my fantasy.

Peace and best of everything to you,

Clara

[Felicity11]

To us beach cleaning is just something we do every time we go to the beach or out on the water. 

We have a beach group here in Australia and they have placed metal buckets at several beaches around Sydney for locals to use to pick up rubbish and easily get it to a rubbish bin. 

We also had a great program in Manly with some participating cafes offering you a free coffee if you collected a bucket of rubbish from the beach!   Here is a bit more about it! 

https://concreteplayground.com/sydney/design-style/these-sydney-cafes-will-give-you-a-free-coffee-fo...

[Laurelle3]

@Clara116 we have Clean up Australia Day and it is the first Sunday in March. many Australians register and go out in their local area where gaze designated. It becomes a friends and family day.

Currently our local beach has a lot of natural rubbish from the banks being washed away with the last lot of the storms. But their is very little human made rubbish along the beach that I have noticed when I go for my walk. If there is I do the right thing and pick it up and take it to the nearest bin.

Clara, I like your idea of getting your group together and doing an environmental activity.

[Sheng72]

@Clara116 @I only went to beach for one time.And this experience let me feel so boring.At that time,I was 8 year old.The sea.The sea is not the same as I imagin.It's don't beautiful.And I not saw warship that I expect I can saw. I'm so curious why your so love nature. I and peers don't like natur,too.We're like stay in home.We're went to park for several times per year.This is only way let us touch nature.Maybe I should love nature,too.What I can do for make me love nature and care about nature?

In fact,I thought walking in nature was so boring.Nature only have trees and soils.Only have green、brown、and blue.We think nature has nothing.It's always the same.Nothing new.I and my classmates like play games,reading books、watch TV.They'are all things let me think interesting.Did I do something wrong?Did I should change?I don't know.

[Clara116]

@Sheng72 Hello from Florida - thank you very much for writing to tell me about your life and what you think about the things in your world. It seems to me that we are all the people we are because of all the experiences we had as we grew up and the things our families enjoyed together and shared. I was raised with a large family and there was much playing in nature with animals, climbing trees and enjoying the ocean, swimming, boat racing, skiing on the water and many other fun things and that made me completely love everything about nature. We didn't grow up with cell phones, TV's and social media - we went to school and read books, but almost all was our experiences with our brothers and sisters that we shared surely developed what we loved and what we did not enjoy. 

I was sad that nature bores you - but I understand you have a much different life and experiences and that has shaped your world and how you experience everything. If you and all your friends were gathered and able to play, laugh and be silly on a trip to the beach or to see a zoo maybe it would change things some for you. If our exposure to something has been negative or no fun, not enjoyable at all than I would imagine we would not wish to do that again. You expected to see the warship and that didn't happen and so disappointment makes things look grey, not pretty, at least for me it does. 

Sheng, I hope that the things you read about in your books that interest you might open up doors for exploring more in the world, like nature, the ocean or an amazing water fall in the jungles somewhere. 

My father loved nature, exploring anything and everything, the ocean, camping, boat making, racing and water skiing, car racing, everything about having fun and playing and he passed that love and interest onto all of my brothers and sisters. I never stopped to think what I might be like if my father had only wanted to stay home and read books and didn't enjoy life. I think I would be different and we would not be meeting through this community center. 

Sheng, if you and your friends all planned time outside together with a few games you might feel differently.  

How you see nature as always the same is very interesting to me....because in fact, nature is always changing, always, sometimes very small changes that you don't see. Have you ever had a garden? Have you ever grown something from a seed? If you can, with your friends grow something, a flower or even food - I don't know where you live or your climate but surely you can grow something. That would be such fun, you can have a big game of who can grow the prettiest flower or the biggest vegetable or something like that. What do you think of that idea? 

If you explore with your friends maybe the doors of the fascination of nature will open for you and I promise it is such an amazing journey. Nature is always changing, always and when you can discover that your world will also change some and open up and you will not be bored. Where were you supposed to see that warship that so disappointed you? Where was that beach located?

Thank you for writing and have fun today.

all the best to you, Clara

[Laurelle3]

@Clara116 It appears my childhood was very similar to yours when growing up and I love nature. When a bird calls I like to identify the sound of their calling. I am blessed to hear the waves calling at change of the tide at night. It is sad that @Sheng72 has not had the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of nature that we have surrounding us both.

Shengs profile shows that he only joined in April 2022 maybe he needs a bit of help from @Emilie  and Airbnb help desk.

@Clara116 your expressions are so positive and helpful and I enjoy meeting you on zoom meetings. Please keep sending out positive messages and assistance for hosts and viewers on the Community Centre forum. 

[Clara116]

@Laurelle3 how cool that we have lived  and experienced much instep in our lives - with the joys and thrills and beauty around us and our families. I sing back to the birds, my little dogs look at me weird when I do....wonder if they understand Bird talk?? 

Thanks for your very encouraging words - I'm reaching out for positive as there's been so much negative around us all in the past few years and here in Florida it is no easy task with the great divide many are living.

All the best to you Laurelle - one day I will be visiting your amazing country, I hope. 

[Sheng72]

@Clara116 I went to the beach for the first time at northeastern China.I remember my dad buy（or pick up）a conch for me.It look like ugly.In my memories,the beach was no clean.（no garbage,maybe only it's not as beauty as I thought ）

I afraid of some creatures （snake、gecko）since I was young.I remember I don't dare to reading Souvenirs Entomologiques by Jean-Henri Casimir Fabre when I was the primary school student.And now worse,even when I see it picture.I will tinnitus immediately.And my brain went blank.I seemed to be enchanted and fixed.

I remember I not afraid of snake and even curious when I was a kindergarten child.But everyone all afraid of it.And I love dogs and wanted to keep one.But my mom fear of dogs.Now I will heart beats faster when I see dog.

[Sheng72]

@Laurelle3 I'm so admire you can identify the sound when the bird calls.I remember I saw a bird months ago.I never saw like this,I seem to see a unicorn.I need my phone and use photo recognition what it is.It is a dove.（it is common in my area.）I never expect the creature so special like this just a dove.

[Ralf5]

@Clara116 , @Felicity11 , @Laurelle3 

I like your beach cleaning activities with your groups, friends and family.

Since more than 15 years I am collecting rubbish where ever I am walking outside in the nature, along a river or lake, in the mountains and at the beaches in Germany, France, Italy and other European countries where I usually spend my holidays.

When I was younger a typical beach day would just be swimming, sun bathing and reading a book in between. Lateron I got bored after a while and started to collect small shells, little coulored stones and similar. But since about 15 years now I do collect all kind of plastik, metal and glass  and put into the bin at the entrance - and the good thing is I don't feel bored anymore, the opposite is the case: this activiy gives me a kind of satisfaction at the end of the day.

[Laurelle3]

@Ralf5 as a child we visited the beach discovering  rockpools, shell collecting, swimming, and drawing in the sand, and building sandcastles were our activities. I don't remember sea much rubbish on the beach let alone many other people. I think our increased population, industrialisation, over fishing, and water run off from towns and cities and our throw away society has increased our rubbish being wsept out to sea and landing on our beaches.