Impact stories

Regular cleanups build trust and engagement within communities. Once trust has been established, volunteers can take our mission one step further through our Trash Hero Communities programme.  Trash Hero Communities aims to create consensus for zero waste systems and lifestyles that can address the plastics crisis. Events range from educational presentations to implementing reuse systems

What keeps Trash Hero volunteers organising regular cleanups year round? Perhaps the secret lies in our regular Trash Hero Family Meetings. Here, our chapter teams can network, share and better understand the “why” behind our actions. It’s an intense and often deep experience. As one volunteer from Thailand put it: “there is no other seminar

It all began with a simple idea. In December 2013, a group of friends gathered on a beach in Thailand, with the goal of cleaning up the trash that was washing up on the shore from all corners of the globe. It was the start of something extraordinary: a journey of ten remarkable years that

The results of our big volunteer survey are in! Discover who volunteers for our movement – and what motivates them. Trash Hero volunteers are the driving force of our mission to create a world free from plastic pollution. To find out more about the incredible individuals who dedicate their time and energy to the movement,

Every week volunteers around the world put on their yellow t-shirts and commit to working towards a world free from plastic pollution – but what does it really mean to be a Trash Hero? It means that we are a global movement. Trash Hero is currently active in 139 locations in 17 countries. To date,

Sandro Schnarwiler, the managing director of Schnarwiler cosmetics, has been passionate about the problem of plastic pollution for a long time. After watching a television documentary that featured Trash Hero in 2018, he decided he wanted to help. He approached the team with the idea of developing a refill and reuse system for his cosmetic

In November, Break Free From Plastic released their 5th annual Brand Audit report. As well as documenting which companies are responsible for the majority of plastic counted this year, it analyses which corporations have been responsible for the majority of plastic pollution for five consecutive years.  The 2022 report consisted of 397 brand audits on

Our half-year numbers are in! Our half-year numbers are in, and they make us so proud of every single volunteer who has contributed to the impact of the global Trash Hero movement – whether they joined one cleanup or 100!  In just six months in 2022, 26,666 volunteers (of which 8,098 were under 16) completed

Trash Hero World is honoured to have been granted formal consultative status at the United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA). This “observer status” is awarded through an accreditation from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which we received on 16 March 2022. UNEP has been working for 50 years to protect the environment, fight climate change

The average city-dweller in Thailand produces 1.3kg of waste per day. Trash Hero Pattani organised a camping trip for 125 people that generated just 40g of waste per person, per day! How did they manage it? They started training several weeks before the trip to the beautiful region of Yala, in southern Thailand. A group

Did you know that in 2021 alone Trash Hero organised 2,801 cleanups? That is almost 8 cleanups on every single day of the year! We have also welcomed 49,426 volunteers on board, including 11,531 under the age of 16. We collected a whopping 284,606 kg of trash, an average of 102 kg per cleanup. With

Billed as the film “Big Oil doesn’t want you to see”, the Emmy-Award winning documentary The Story of Plastic presents a cohesive timeline of how we got to the current stage in the global plastic crisis, showing how the petrochemical and FMCG industries manipulated the narrative around the pollution they were creating, successfully pinning the

Entering its eighth year, new challenges have emerged for Trash Hero Indonesia. No longer do we wonder how to get people to join our clean ups, but how to prevent the trash from existing in the first place. With the increasing recognition of Trash Hero Indonesia as an organisation advocating the concept of zero waste,

  “Through our actions, we can highlight that the system isn’t good enough […] We no longer want to wait for the state to do something, for someone else to do something, for a neighbour to do something, therefore I’ll do something. I’m the one.” So speaks our own Dragana Katić, volunteer leader of Trash

The Trash Hero movement has recently reached a very important milestone on the journey to zero-waste: more than 2 MILLION KG of trash collected! As of 30 June 2021: We have engaged 391,791 volunteers, including 98,341 kids. We have done 13,598 cleanups, collecting 2,005,774 kg of trash. We are active in 162 locations in 20

With our cleanup programme now well established in dozens of locations around Southeast Asia, many of our volunteers are ready to take things to the next level: to move beyond picking up the trash and initiate community-level waste reduction programmes, in conjunction with local authorities. It was with this in mind that we embarked on

We all know that switching to reusables instead of single-use for everyday items like cutlery, food packaging and water bottles avoids a lot of plastic. Reducing waste and pollution is usually the main motivation for people who choose to reuse. In addition to this, a recent study has also quantified the climate positive impact of

The results of Break Free From Plastic’s annual Brand Audit Report have been released today, confirming that, for the third year in row, the same few companies are responsible for the vast quantities of single-use plastic polluting our planet. In total, during August and September, 14,734 volunteers in 55 countries conducted 575 brand audits, collecting

Being a Trash Hero has become a way of life for thousands of volunteers around the world. Our simple and non-confrontational actions to reduce plastic waste can be integrated seamlessly into any cultural setting. Here is a wonderful example in Bali, where the local Hindu community has made cleanups part of its religious rituals. The

As Trash Heroes, we know a community cleanup is one of the most effective ways to help people understand the impact of plastic pollution and create the positive energy needed for change. But we also know cleanups on their own are not a long term solution to the problem of plastic waste. For that, we

This week, Break Free From Plastic (BFFP) released their second global brand audit, Branded Vol. II: Identifying the World’s Top Corporate Plastic Polluters.  On 2019’s World Clean Up Day held September 21, more than 72 thousand volunteers from 51 countries around the world collected 476,423 pieces of plastic from coastlines, riversides, and within their communities

Our Trash Hero chapter in Langsuan, Chumphon Province, Thailand, has come up with an ingenious scheme to motivate local residents to separate and recycle their waste. In an area with no waste management infrastructure – not even basic garbage collection – most households either dump or openly burn their trash, as they have done for

Last week, Trash Hero Bangkok joined regional stakeholders at a United Nations Environmental Programme-led conference in Bangkok dedicated to tackling the transboundary challenge of marine litter. Globally, more than 80 percent of plastic marine debris comes from land-based sources. And in Asia, both rapid development and economic success has strained waste management – an issue

Our Trash Heroes in Myanmar met President U Win Myint at a World Environment Day event in Nay Pyi Taw. The President was originally introduced to Trash Hero in 2018, then honoring the growing national movement and its local chapters for their fantastic work, and for promoting the spirit of sustainability within their individual communities. 

For the first time in five years, leatherback turtles have laid eggs on Thai shores. Leatherbacks are the largest, deepest-diving and farthest-ranging of all the sea turtles, and are known to have existed on Earth since the time of the dinosaurs, 110 million years ago. Yet they are on the brink of worldwide extinction. Mai

Our amazing Trash Hero chapters are always going the extra mile to involve their communities. In Trang Province in Thailand, the team have recently launched a campaign to “bring your own” reusable bottle, bag, cutlery or container when out shopping or ordering takeaway food. Their aim is to persuade local businesses – and not just

It’s been an extraordinary month for Trash Hero in Thailand. We were delighted to see the Prime Minister of Thailand, Prayut Chan-ocha, highlight the growing problem of plastic waste within the kingdom on his weekly address to the nation. His second report on the topic, broadcast across all channels on 10 August 2018, outlined the

Our friends over at The Whale Company are currently carrying out a 300 kilometer mission to deliver “a message in a bottle” to the UK Parliament about the rising tide of plastic pollution. The team is stand-up paddling its way along the famed UK river route – from source to sea – aboard their trademark

Experts have agreed for years that kids learn material differently than adults, and they also insist that how a child is educated bears great impact on his or her understanding of the world, shaping behaviours that will stay with a person throughout his or her life. In Saba, Indonesia, the local Trash Heroes have launched

Many countries around the world have banned the use of polystyrene – also commonly known as styrofoam – because of its extremely negative environmental impact. For years the material was a popular packaging for food items, electronics, furniture, and disposables because of its light weight, low expense, and wide availability. However, the material is essentially

/// BILD 1 Meine erste Begegnung mit Trash Hero hatte ich in Thailand, wo ich bei diversen Clean Ups mitgeholfen habe. Diese Bewegung hat mich dermassen inspiriert, dass ich auf meinen Trails wie z.B. dem Pacific Crest Trail in den USA, der herumliegende Abfall zusammengesammelt habe. So auch auf dem Israel National Trail, wovon ich

Stafanie Waser first encountered the Trash Hero movement while in Thailand, where she participated in various cleanups. An avid hiker, Stefanie began to collect trash whenever she was hiking, from the Pacific Crest Trail in the US to her most recent effort conquering The Israeli National Trail – rated as among the 10 most beautiful

The Whale Company is a conservation organization started by two passionate conservationists who wanted to connect their love for the ocean with an inspirational message about sustainability. Carolyn and Carlos spent 2017 paddling their way through 12 Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP) marathons on their own, handmade Bottle Boards. The boards are entirely constructed of plastic

Schnarwiler AG and Trash Hero World launch four refillable beauty products with 100% natural ingredients. Together they make a valuable contribution to reduce plastic waste in the hotel sector. --Für Deutsch bitte runter scrollen-- Love Earth, Love Water, Love Air and Love Fire - these are the sounding names of the four new products that

Last November, Greeneration Indonesia hosted the 4th annual National Zero Waste Jamboree 2017 in Banda Aceh. By participating in this jamboree, Trash Hero Indonesia is now listed as national movement that is supported by the Indonesian government. “We are citizens of countries, but we are also citizens of the world,” said Trash Hero Rima Agustina,

One of the most impressive abilities of our Trash Hero leaders is their talent for collaborating and uniting an entire community against unnecessary waste, across cultures, languages, businesses, and a number of other interests. Last month, Trash Hero Koh Samui hosted a community-wide event to further network the organization alongside like-minded interests on the island

Trash Hero is proud to announce our participation in the global I Care initiative among various organizations, companies, associations and individuals around the world dedicated to a cleaner ocean. I Care participants commit to tackle the problem of marine plastic through three steps: Reduce daily consumption of disposable plastic items Remove of plastic waste from

Last week, Trash Hero was among representatives from across Southeast Asia to attend the first ever ASEAN Conference on Reducing Marine Debris. Members of regional and international NGOs, academics, governmental bodies, private companies, and the UN Environmental Programme gathered in Phuket, Thailand to “share experiences, best practices, and views on tackling marine debris issues,” according

This weekend was the International Coastal Cleanup, a global event organized by the Ocean Conservancy, and millions of volunteers worldwide took to the oceans and coastlines to remove waste. According to the Ocean Conservancy, plastic has been found in 62% of all sea birds and 100% of sea turtle species. The organization records what types

This year, the Trash Hero family has swelled to an amazing 42 chapters across nine countries – Thailand, Indonesia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar, China, and the USA. More than 47,000 volunteers have removed 345,203 kilograms of trash from our oceans, waterways, roads, beaches and communities, and that number grows every single day through

Esther Thomet recently attended the National Geographic Student Expedition, a student travel program run through various locations around the world that aims to inspire and educate middle school and high school students. While in Tulamben in Northeastern Bali, a representative from Trash Hero introduced the student group to the organization before they took to the

The three day “Wonderfruit Festival Pattaya” is the biggest music- and arts festival in Thailand with a mission to “encourage, develop and innovate creative solutions for sustainable living and bring together a global community to celebrate them. We use our platform to catalyze creativity and make a meaningful, positive impact.” Alongside well-known musical acts, workshops,

Trash Hero Koh Phangan in Thailand has been actively organizing beach, reef and jungle cleanups since its inception, and has successfully arranged partnerships and cooperative projects with other local organizations as well. Now local businesses are throwing in their support as well. Local businesses so often are at the forefront of our regional success stories,

9 February 2017 – Trash Hero Indonesia A few weeks ago, Trash Hero Indonesia volunteers received this message: “Hey Trash Hero, I need your help! My son, Alex, is incredibly concern with the trash on Bali and has truly taken it to heart. For some reason, he really wants a Beach Cleanup Party for his 7th birthday, which

24 January 2017 – Trash Hero Myanmar Watch a wonderful movie Trash Hero Myanmar made about their work here, or check a recent segment that was aired in the news here. Trash Heroes have been active in Myanmar since July 2016, when a first chapter was founded in Yangon, Myanmar. The movement has made headway quickly, with a further

23 January 2017 – Trash Hero Trang (Thailand) Trash Heroes from Trash Hero Trang (Thailand) have just made the news. Watch it here. Making us proud!  

20 January 2017 – Trash Hero Mandalay & Pyin Oo Lwin (Myanmar) Trash Hero Mandalay & Pyin Oo Lwin have created the most amazing video of their recent cleanup. Their work was supported by the Mayor of Mandalay and many local businesses, who -along with the dedicated organizers and volunteers- contributed to this success. See it

06 January 2017 – Trash Hero @Work Program Our recent launch of the Trash Hero @Work program has just been written about in a Swiss newspaper from Lucerne. Read it here. Trash Hero World’s @Work program creates a solid basis for reducing corporate and business waste to a minimum. In a first step, all office waste

18 December 2016 – Trash Hero Langkawi A team of 7 heroes didn’t collect any trash, but instead participated in a tree-planting event organised by Flag Langkawi (Friends of Langkawi Geopark). Flag had invited officials and people from a variety of organisations to join and plant mangroves on Pulau Dayang Bunting. A total of around 50

17 December 2016 – Trash Hero Word & GKS Architekten + Partner AG We have just launched the @Work program in cooperation with the architectural office GKS Architekten + Partner AG from Lucerne, Switzerland . The aim of the program is to reduce office waste to a minimum, and our project creates a solid basis

8 November 2016 – Trash Hero Thailand Wins Thailand Green Excellence Award We are delighted to announce that  Trash Hero Thailand has won the Thailand Green Excellence Award in the category “Outstanding Contribution to Green Tourism in Thailand”. Her Royal Highness Princess of Thailand Ubol Ratanarachakanya Siriwatanaphanwadi presented the prestigious awards during a memorable ceremony hosted

3 November 2016 – Trash Hero Shanghai Trash Hero World is now also in China… starting in Shanghai! Their first weekly cleanup just took place and many more will follow. We’re hoping that the movement will now spread out to many more locations in China!

October 17, 2016 – Trash Hero Langkawi (Malaysia) Celebrating One Year of Cleanups Happy Birthday Trash Hero Langkawi, Malaysia. In the past year 42 cleanups have taken place, during which a total of 780 people volunteered to help and picked up 12’217 kg of trash. Most importantly, many wonderful connections were made and a lot of young people could

September 26, 2016 – Trash Hero Myanmar Trash Hero Myanmar cleaned Ngwe Saung with 380 people and collected a total of 3’900 kg of trash. The organisers are hoping to start various cleanups in the country. All photos and recent information on cleanups can be found on their Facebook page here.

September 26, 2016 – Trash Hero China in the making? Constance is 9 years old and lives in China. Together with her mother, she recently cleaned up on the Great Wall of China. Her inspiration had been the pictures of weekly cleanups coming from Trash Hero Hua Hin (Thailand), and she therefore decided to do the

15 June 2016 – Trash Hero Bangkok During our first cleanup in Bangkok just recently some of our Trash Heroes took to the water and collected trash while on standup paddle boards. How awesome is that?

Our Hero Kayla Staples recently wrote this excellent article about the growing Trash Hero World movement: Trash Hero began with a group of like-minded individuals organising a weekly beach clean up, and now, just two years later, what started as Trash Hero Thailand, has grown to Trash Hero Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Czech Republic, upcoming chapters in New

We only recently announced a new partnership with Coboat, the awesome co-working space on a huge catamaran. They’ve already been busy doing cleanups when not aboard the vessel, and just completed a cleanup on Koh Phi Phi Leh. Random finds they reported included a bike helmet and winter gloves, and altogether they filled 30 bags

03 January 2016 From our Trash Hero Ao Nang chapter: What a year! It’s been an incredible journey, starting with a few black bags and a desire for change. Along the way, with the simple mission of a weekly beach cleanup, we have spread the message to local people, businesses, schools and government. The beach