United by a shared passion and responsibility for the great outdoors, we took to the trails to reconnect with nature and take positive action.
Following on from a day of knowledge sharing and inspiration, the second day of the Blue Earth Summit was about getting out there and getting active. Key conversations carried on in the water while surfing, on the trail running and on the road cycling.
Headline sponsor, Trek, invited two of the community organisations that they support along – with the trio of Trek, London Cycling Campaign (LCC) and Trash Free Trails representing two-wheeled transportation at the Summit.
Ashok Sinha, CEO of LCC, spoke at the event about their aim to inspire behavioural change, to get people on their bike and ensure that the infrastructure is in place to support a safe switch from four wheels to two.
Attendees were then invited to bring their bikes along on the second day of the event, to join Trash Free Trails on a purposeful adventure, riding from The Wave to the banks of the River Avon – a frontline spot where single-use plastic and other litter makes it into our waterways.
Trash Free Trails mission is to encourage and empower each other to DO IT OURSELVES (DIO). We can all make a positive difference each time we ride, run or roam by removing and reporting the trash that we see.
In just 30 minutes and a 300m stretch of river bank the team of riders discovered a discarded television, a plastic garden chair and a traffic cone. In total they collected over 100 pieces of trash, including plastic bottles, cans and countless other single use plastics, which got loaded up into Zedify’s eCargo bike and taken to be recycled.
It’s clear the scale of single-use plastics and other disposable items in our everyday lives is has to change. This change won’t happen overnight, but something that we can all do in the near-term is jump on your bike and make your next adventure a purposeful one.
Thanks to Trash Free Trails, Trek, London Cycling Campaign and Zedify for inspiring positive change and reconnecting people with nature. This weekend is the final weekend of Trash Free Trails Halloween Trail Clean Tour, so if your local trails are haunted get out there and get clearing!
