12 September 2023
Glenwood Old Boy, Cameron Service, was announced as the winner of the Environmental and Climate Sustainability Award at the first Forty under 40 South Africa Awards, held at the Houghton Hotel in Johannesburg on Saturday.
Previously, he received The Mail and Guardian’s Greening the Future Award.
According to the Forty Under 40 organisers: “We want to celebrate entrepreneurs and business leaders who are committed to business growth, professional excellence, community service and have risen up the ranks of their companies or industries at a relatively young age.
“We believe that putting the spotlight on these young achievers will not only celebrate them – it will also afford them an opportunity to build a stronger platform where they can have even greater opportunities and also open doors for the next generation.”
It’s a big feather in the cap for Service, who matriculated in 2005. His initiative, The Litterboom Project (TLP), which began in 2017, primarily tackles the massive problem of plastic pollution in the oceans. Through innovative approaches, TLP is not only helping to address the issue, but is also creating work opportunities for people from many areas most affected by the problem.
LEARN MORE – Plastic Catchment System | www.thelitterboomproject.com | South Africa
“Honoured”
Reacting to winning the award, Service said: “I feel honoured to have been nominated for, and after quite a process, selected as a winner for South Africa’s first Forty under 40 awards in the Environmental and Sustainability category.
“I am privileged to be working in this space and proud to have such a great bunch of people around me at The Litterboom Project.
“I was fortunate to have two of these partners join me last night for this occasion. Thank you, David Churchman and Warren Winchester, for the support.”
TLP deals with the problem of plastic pollution by attacking it in rivers, which is where 80 percent of ocean plastic pollution originates. The success of the project has been staggering. Working in 10 rivers – eight in KwaZulu-Natal and two in the Western Cape – TLP has stopped over 500 000 kilograms of plastic from reaching South Africa’s ocean waters.
Northwood cleans up the Beachwood Mangroves | Pinnacle Schools (pinnacle-schools.com)
Multi-dimensional approach
The project’s approach to the issue is multi-dimensional, beginning with river wardens, who work in the rivers to remove plastic before it reaches the ocean. The work is done hand-in-hand with reclaimers, which boosts recycling efforts. At the same time, job opportunities are created for people from informal settlements.
To assist these efforts, TLP also works to educate the public. Often, this involves also putting infrastructure in place to help communities bring about changes that impact them positively.
Furthermore, TLP supports innovation initiatives, which are aimed at putting waste to good use. Again, this creates opportunities for ‘Wastepreneurs’ to profit from something that would otherwise have been harmful to the environment.
DHS leads effort to clean up Addington Beach | Pinnacle Schools (pinnacle-schools.com)
Supporting TLP
During the course of the year, TLP also organises Beach Jam Sessions, which bring together communities to help clean up their environments. Two remain on the 2023 calendar: Ballito on 21 October and the Mangroves on 9 December.
A big fundraiser is The Run the Rivers campaign, which invites supporters to run and walk the length of the uMgeni River over the course of five days. It is also used as an opportunity to highlight the challenges placed on the river, which is home to four big dams: Midmar, Albert Falls, Nagle and Inanda.
One of the campaign’s primary goals is to raise R1 000 000 for the Umgeni River Source to Sea Initiative, which aims to improve the water quality and ecosystem health of the Umgeni River.
People are also welcome to donate to TLP on the organisation’s website. Please visit the link above.
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