June 5, 2021 - Volunteers picked up garbage and cleaned the green territory in Split and Solin on two sunny Saturdays. The active weekends in Split were organised by the Association 'Sunce' and Zagrebačka pivovara d.o.o. One TCN intern reports from the field. 

An action in Solin became a part of a socially responsible campaign ‘Čuvaj, pazi, ne bacaj!’ (Take care, take caution, don't throw!) initiated by Zagrebačka pivovara. The idea was to clean 15 illegal dumps throughout the country. With the support of local partners - ecologically conscious local associations and clubs - it started on 12 May in Osijek and finishes today in Solin. In Split, the association 'Sunce' that protects nature and the environment was featured as a partner of the campaign.

I was invited to participate in the cleaning action by my friend from 'Sunce', then I invited my colleague from the Split scout association. In fact, I was waiting for my friends from Zagreb to come to Split for a weekend, as I got an invitation. My friends were going to relax in sunny Split - for one of them it was supposed to come to Dalmatia for the first time - and I was thinking about an easy beach & bar program for them. But then I decided that Saturday cleaning in the suburbs would be a nice beginning of the weekend. Actually, it shows that our lovely Split is not only a tourist spot to chill, it's a city that cares about the ecology and provides an enabling environment for living.

We met with 'Sunce' staff at 09:00 am and came to the garbage dump in Solin at 09:30. Offhand, half of the volunteers came from Split and a half from Solin. Among volunteers, there were local people from the Split neighborhoods as well as expats from North Macedonia, Russia, Italy, and Germany. Some staff of the Zagrebačka pivovara office located in Dugopolje joined us too. In sum, we were around 25 people on the first Saturday, 22 May, and around 10 people on the second Saturday, 29 May. Therefore, the first Saturday team handled all the garbage in a little over two hours, while the second team used all the time allotted (4 h).

Zagrebačka pivovara provided us with cleaning tools, protective gloves, corporate identity t-shirts, and some snacks and non-alcohol drinks at the beginning. Within two hours we collected about 30 large garbage bags. By the way, we have learned that it's easier to clean dense clusters of garbage, probably, typical weekend grill places, than garbage disseminated along the road. My first finding was a funny child's toy. The second finding was a thrown can of Ožujsko pivo. My friends competed to find the oldest soda can or bottle. If I'm not mistaken, a Coke from1993 won this competition.

With all the garbage bags filled, we created a live chain and put it together on the side of the road from where it will be taken for disposal. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of solidarity and cooperation in our chain speaking in Croatian, Russian and German simultaneously. Upon cleaning, we moved to a beautiful nature place in Solin - Odmorište uz rijeku Jadro (Rest area along the Jadro river). There, Zagrebačka pivovara offered us a grill and beers in the fresh air. It was a good reward for good work and a great chance to get to know the people you're volunteering with.

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