Athena Wagner
During my month in Dar es Salaam, I participated in a beach cleanup at Msasani Beach alongside my colleague, Bode Brewer, and mentor, Zakayo Zakaria. Bode and I arrived shortly before the cleanup started, and took a walk along the beach before Zakayo arrived with the rest of that week’s cleanup crew. Watching the sun rise was a serene start to the day, and as its heat began to reach us, I felt energized and prepared for the cleanup. As we waited for the remainder of our team, we strolled along the beach before encountering our opponent— litter and waste, including clothes, nets, and bottles, lining the shore. In areas with heavier pollution, soft incoming waves met lumps of waste before hitting the sand. We walked and observed for a few more minutes before heading to the meetup spot.
Soon after, Zakayo and the youth arrived. From what I could tell, we were a smaller team than normal, but that was not a deterrent. Zakayo facilitated introductions and light conversation as the only fluent English and Kiswahili speaker. The morning officially began with tea, and soon after, we distributed gloves, rakes, bags, and masks. Our next step was to establish a goal, so we chose a stretch of the beach that felt feasible to clean, given our limited manpower. The process was very meditative, and as the morning progressed, we began to work more cohesively. Despite the language barrier, we were determined to work together. When I filled up a bag, I was often met by the outstretched hand of another volunteer, handing me a replacement. It was an unspoken rule that whoever had the shovel came around to scoop up the small piles created by the others picking waste by hand.
When the majority started feeling tired, we decided to wrap things up and begin weighing the waste. We collected almost half a ton of waste that day, and tried to identify what our biggest obstacles were, how we could make the cleanup process more efficient, etc. Before parting ways, I took the opportunity to practice my Kiswahili, as I was going to be in Dar es Salaam for another three weeks. I did not try anything beyond the simple questions I studied on the plane ride over, but the kids seemed enthusiastic in their answers (of which I understood very little without Zakayo’s help). Beyond that, though, we had a communal sense of pride because we had contributed to and witnessed the transformation of the beach. It is not to say the work is over after one cleanup, or will be in our lifetimes, but it is definitely work worth doing.
