Still cleaning our beaches, 30 tonnes of trash later

Malaysia boasts stunning coastlines, yet a significant amount of plastic waste from the country ends up in the ocean. Malaysia ranks third worldwide in terms of ocean plastic contribution by mass. This issue led to the founding of 'MY Clean Beach,' an environmental advocacy movement co-founded in 2019 by Geeva Samynathan. The group, which began as a passion project, has grown to remove nearly 30,000kg of waste from Malaysia's beaches over the past eight years.

Today, 'MY Clean Beach' relies on a network of community volunteers who dedicate their Saturdays to beach clean-ups. The organization primarily works with corporate clients for two- to three-hour clean-ups at various locations across Malaysia. One of their largest clean-up efforts collected 1,200kg of trash in a single session. To ensure zero waste, the team sorts collected materials into categories like glass, metal, plastic, and more, and repurposes 100% of the waste.

Single-use plastics and cigarette butts are the most common finds. The group avoids using single-use gloves and instead provides volunteers with washable fabric and rubber-coated work gloves. Geeva hopes more Malaysians will join their efforts, emphasizing that while awareness has grown, behavior change is still needed to tackle the issue of trash disposal effectively.