For her #100DaysOfGreenNevis project, flautist Kris De Roeck has decided to collect one piece of litter everyday.
We first heard from Kris on day thirty-eight of the campaign. You can read her post here.
For my #100DaysOfGreenNevis I decided to collect one or more pieces of litter every day.
I was inspired to do this by the amount of litter I see on a daily basis as I walk around Glasgow Southside.
This challenge started with the idea of picking one piece of litter every day, but it eventually turned into multiple pieces or even bags full of litter. On every walk I do now I take a bin bag with me. By the end of my walk I hope that it is not full but most of the time it sadly enough is. I noticed that last weeks has been increasingly worse, the good weather is here and people love spending time outside and that’s absolutely great but the amount of litter is making me and a lot of other people really sad.
So my question for you is if you are going out to enjoy the sun and the beautiful outdoors, could you please please please take extra care that you are not leaving any litter behind?
We need to take care of our surroundings, even with picking up 1 piece of litter you make this world already a better place, as easy as that 🙂
During my litter picking walks I had to think of this Flemish song I love listening to, it is called Laat ons een bloem (leave them a flower). It is a song originally written by Wally Whyton but it is translated in Flemish by the singer Louis Neefs.
Here are the English lyrics of the song:
Leave Them A Flower
(Wally Whyton)
Leave them a flower, some grass and a hedgerow
A hill and a valley, a view to the sea
These things are not yours to destroy as you want to A gift given once for eternity
I speak on behalf of the next generation
My sons and daughters, their children to come What will you leave them for their recreation An oil slick, a pylon, an industrial slum
You plunder and pillage, you tear and you tunnel Trees lying toppled, roots finger the sky
Building a land for machines and computers
In the name of progress the farms have to die
Fish in the ocean polluted and poisoned
The sand on the beaches stinking and black
And you with your tankers, your banks and investments Say, Never worry, the birds will come back
When the last flower has dropped its last petal
When the last concrete is finally laid
The moon will shine cold on a nightmarish landscape Your gift to your children, this world that you made
And here is the Flemish version of the song:
From 1 February 2021, Nevis is running #100DaysOfGreenNevis, where our musicians, staff and trustees will each take on a task for 100 days linked to Sustainability. We’d love you to join us, either by following the campaign online to get ideas of what you can do, or to show us you own actions for us to share. If you would like to know more, do get in touch at georgina@nevisensemble.org
Nevis Ensemble’s #GreenNevis campaign in 2019 won the Environmental Sustainability award at the 2020 Scottish Awards for New Music, and was shortlisted for Best Campaign by Julie’s Bicycle.