Former Bristol Uni student's mission to get the UK 'plogging'
Environmentalist Vivek Gurav took up the activity in India - but didn't want to stop when he came to the UK to study for his Master's degree
Last updated 6th Dec 2022
A self-titled 'plogger' has been travelling the length and breadth of the UK - in an aim to make our cities a cleaner place to live.
Vivek Gurav, who's been on more than 120 plogging runs already since moving to the UK in 2021, and his army of volunteers have picked up over 5,000kg of rubbish in Bristol alone - and has now expanded his mission in cities across the country.
Who's Vivek - and what's he doing?
Quite simply, the act of 'plogging' is jogging and picking up litter - a trend that started back in 2016 in Sweden.
The Indian environmentalist's journey started back in his home country, where Vivek began 'plogging' - but when he came to study for his Master's in Environmental Policy and Management at the University of Bristol last year, he just didn't want to stop.
Since then, he's covered more than 420 miles on over 120 plogging 'missions' - and has been joined by volunteers from no fewer than 180 countries.
Earlier this year, Vivek was given an award by the Prime Minister, was invited to speak at the COY17 conference (the youth version of the COP27 Climate Conference in Sharm-el-Sheikh) and has already had a number of media appearances for his efforts of getting the nation to start 'plogging'.
It was only in October when he was invited to 10 Downing Street by the newly-elected Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to discuss the impact of his efforts.
Now, though, he's been taking his show on the road.
Plogging across the UK
After hours of hard work, and working with hundreds of volunteers, Vivek has been on a tour of the UK - and is currently on a challenge of visiting 30 cities in as many days.
Back when he was in India, he created a community of ploggers - and that's exactly what he wants to do here now too, visiting each city in a more sustainable way, too: via public transport.
Indeed, over the past four years alone, the volunteering community in his home country have collected more than a million kilograms of litter.
Some of the cities on his plogging journey include:
- Bristol
- Derby
- Nottingham
- Leeds
- Sheffield
- Manchester
- Liverpool
- Leicester
- Birmingham
- Worcester
You'll be able to keep up-to-date with his plogging tour - just check-out Vivek's Instagram page.
Victoria Rooms, Bristol
Vivek's journey
Speaking about his mission, Vivek said: "To me, litter is the biggest problem I have seen in the fight against climate change. I decided to get litter picking in the UK because I see a lot of single-use disposables on the streets. And since we have a huge party culture here, I see a lot of beer cans and alcoholic bottles.
"It all started for me in Bristol back in January - where I decided to take on a 30 days plogging challenge. It's something I do wherever I go, as I begin my time in a new community. It also means I can explore the city, get to meet new people, and form a group of people... and that's how it grew in the place I found myself doing my Master's degree.
"In Bristol, since there's a huge international student community, many of them feel that they're lonely in their student accommodation, student houses. What plogging gave them was a platform for them to meet new people. When people come together, they find new friends, they find those who can think the same way.
"This is a place that has always been a safe space, and one of equality, diversity, and inclusion - and the best thing I've ever heard was people thought picking up litter would be a dirty thing to do. But when they started picking it up, it became a passion project - and that's what my plogging groups are all about."
Expanding across the city, Vivek has been growing ambitious plans behind the scenes, talking with prospective groups and locals interested in the litter-picking activity across the country.
He added: "From my time in Bristol, it's given me a global voice, a global recognition, and now I've not only been able to spread this across the city - but across the UK, and across the world.
"When I decided to expand this into a 30-day challenge across the country, it started by speaking to friends and local people in these cities who wanted me to bring the blueprint of plogging in Bristol to them. I'd then do a recce of the area, usually by starting in the city centre, before designing the plogging route initially for these respective cities... and it's built up from there!"
Vivek's message
The Plogman's journey is well and truly underway - and his message couldn't be simpler: "If you find someone plogging in your city, just join them! Be a part of a community - and I'd be more than happy to help you out - that's exactly how my 30 city in 30 days challenge started.
"If you don't want to go outside onto the streets, maybe it's too cold as we get into the winter - that's OK. start by trying to be very efficient in segregating your recycling before bin day. That's one huge problem we've been finding, people have been contaminating recycling bins, and that means a huge problem for councils who have to then deal with the waste.
"But, for those who get out there, plogging is a thing which'll make you feel involved and engaged, as well as giving you the adrenaline boost that makes you want to do it again and again!
"I think it's therapeutic, and good for your mental health, as well as the good of your local community - and it's that which keeps our volunteers coming back to do more plogging.
"After all, people shouldn't have the mindset of asking why they're picking up other people's trash, it should be about everyone working together - after all, the world is all our homes."
Vivek has now graduated from university - and is now focussing on his journey to get the country plogging, and also plans to use the skills he's learnt in the UK to make India more sustainable.
You can follow 'The Plogman' and his journey on Instagram and Twitter.
You can read more about Vivek's award from the then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson here.