The traditional Devol Devala Pageant is an important local festival in the village of Seenigama where our project headquarters The Centre of Excellence is situated, and this annual celebration draws crowds not only from the village of Seenigama but also from the surrounding regions. While it is a time of devotion and celebration, the large gathering also generates a high volume of garbage and waste.
The ‘Plastic Free Task Force’ is an initiative by the Foundation of Goodness that has been set in motion over the past few years to collect and dispose of the large amount of trash and waste left behind by the crowds, by organising a group of volunteers made up of locals and FoG students and staff members who come together every morning after the night pageant to clear up the streets and surrounding areas.
We work closely with local authorities and organisations to manage and recycle/ dispose of the collected waste which is weighed and sorted methodically. The plastic waste was handed over to a plastic recycling centre while the polythene and organic waste was handed over to the local government authority (Pradeshiya Sabha).
This year, the Seenigama Pageant recorded the highest attendance numbers to date, resulting in a higher volume of waste compared to previous years. Our team collected over 1,400 kg of waste material in total (filling 371 XL garbage bags) which is a staggering achievement, and a special ceremony was organised to felicitate everyone who selflessly gave of their time and effort to create a cleaner and more sustainable future. Everyone received a special certificate for taking part and those who joined for 3 or more days also received a plaque in recognition of their dedication.
It is of special note that there are many young children who have been participating across all three years that we have conducted this programme, and this year too we had around 10 young children participating. They showed great enthusiasm, some even participating on all 5 days of the clean-up.
A huge round of thanks goes out to all our volunteers as this was a very physically taxing task, since the clean-up began at 7 am every day and ended around 12 noon, with often working without any breaks under the hot sun.
The programme also received positive recognition from several government institutions and senior police officials while details and outcomes of the programme were shared with the relevant Pradeshiya Sabha or local government authorities.
