The Community Service Unit along with the Green Club at MM BGIMS celebrated World Wildlife Day with a fantastic “Trash Dash” activity! We teamed up with the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) for this eco-friendly adventure. There were total of 50 students for this activity.
Arriving at the SGNP Hatthi gate, we met some awesome volunteers already there with a cool BNHS stand. The organizer, Mr. Shardul Bajikar, briefed us about the activity. Then, Mr. Yogesh Sawant, registrar and faculty member Mr. Aakash Rebello, helped divide the students into groups of 8-9. Each group had a leader responsible for bringing everyone back to the meeting point after collecting waste.
They provided gloves and bags for collecting the trash. Students weren’t the only ones participating in the fun! Walkers and visitors were happy to lend a hand, making it a real community effort. Everyone joined right in and searched everywhere in the park for non-biodegradable waste and started filling up the bags.
After two hours of exploring and collecting, we all met back at the BNHS conservation education center. It was a great chance to take some group photos, celebrate our hard work, and enjoy some delicious snacks! Mr. Ashwin Thawani from Mumbai March gave the students participation certificates and even captured a video byte of the overall experience regarding the activity.
This collaboration between Mumbai March, BNHS, and SGNP was a huge success!
Learning: The students learned a valuable lesson about the importance of protecting our environment and how even small actions like picking up trash can make a big difference.
Feedback: The students had a blast cleaning up the park and spending time in nature. They’re already asking for more activities like this.