Clean Thailand's Beaches and Pick Up Trash with Trash Hero
Trash Hero in Thailand: discover this organization committed to fighting waste, its actions, key figures, and how to join a cleanup operation during your travels.
Founded over 10 years ago, Trash Hero is an organization fighting waste, particularly plastic. Its main action? Cleaning up debris on beaches, in cities, and in rural areas across a dozen countries worldwide. Planning a trip to Thailand? Why not become a waste hero by joining the movement during a cleanup operation? Here's what you need to know...
What is Trash Hero?
Trash Hero is a nonprofit and charitable organization launched in Thailand in 2013 by two travelers, Roman Peter and Jan Bareš. It's a volunteer-driven movement dedicated to fighting waste, particularly plastic.
Trash Hero Around the World
Today, the network extends across numerous Southeast Asian countries as well as several European nations. In total, the organization operates in 13 countries:
Thailand,
Indonesia,
Malaysia,
Myanmar,
Vietnam,
Singapore,
Cambodia,
Japan,
Czech Republic,
Serbia,
Switzerland,
Poland,
Germany,
Netherlands,
Kuwait.
Trash Hero's Initiatives
Trash Hero's mission is to unite and raise awareness in communities to clean up and reduce waste. To achieve this, the movement runs several programs:
Waste Collection:
All Trash Hero chapters organize community cleanup sessions with the support of local businesses. Typically, volunteers gather once a week at various locations (beaches, rural areas, city centers...) to collect as much debris as possible in 1 hour.
Water Refill Network:
Trash Hero combats single-use plastic water bottles. To address this, it has created a water refill network. The organization encourages local businesses to offer free water refills to residents and sells reusable stainless steel water bottles.
Educational Program for Children:
To build a better future, Trash Hero implements numerous education and awareness initiatives for children and younger generations. Beyond mobilizing schools and children from all backgrounds for cleanups, the organization has created an engaging book telling the story of a young waste hero. The book includes numerous challenges to reduce daily waste. Each action completed allows children to earn points and win rewards.
Zero Waste Projects:
Trash Hero offers ongoing training to volunteers interested in launching their own zero waste projects. The topics covered provide better technical knowledge and general skills in waste management, data collection, zero waste principles, communication tools, and more. Through this training, many volunteers have launched their own initiatives (such as community waste banks or composting programs) and have become zero waste ambassadors.
Trash Hero by the Numbers:
20,838 cleanup operations worldwide,
515,643 volunteers worldwide,
2,451,362 kg of waste collected worldwide,
108,688 reusable water bottles sold worldwide,
39,671,120 plastic bottles "saved".
Discover updated figures at trashhero.org
Participate in Waste Cleanups in Thailand with Trash Hero
In 2015 and 2016, Trash Hero Thailand received the prestigious "Thailand Green Excellence Award," honoring organizations that have made an exceptional contribution to Thailand's growth as a sustainable destination.
Planning a trip to Thailand? Why not contribute to reducing waste during your travels? Discover how to participate in waste cleanup operations during your stay:
Where to Join the Trash Hero Community in Thailand?
Trash Hero operates across Thailand:
How to Participate in a Cleanup During Your Thailand Trip?
To participate in beach cleanups or debris collection in Thailand's cities and rural areas, it's simple: just show up. The cleanup operations are free and require no registration. To join a session in your chosen city, visit the local chapter's website to find the scheduled time and location.
Cleanup sessions typically take place weekly. You won't need to bring anything since all necessary materials (gloves, trash bags) are provided free of charge on-site thanks to donations from participating local businesses.
Ready to become a waste hero? Head to trashhero.org to discover upcoming cleanup session dates and times. Beyond becoming an agent of change, you'll meet incredible people who will enrich your travels...
Unable to Join a Trash Hero Cleanup Session?
To support the organization and help reduce waste and plastic worldwide, you can become a volunteer for Trash Hero or make a donation.
Frequently asked questions
Cleanup sessions typically last 1 hour and take place once weekly in each participating city.
No, registration is not required. Simply show up at the time and location listed on the local chapter's website.
Nothing! All necessary materials (gloves, trash bags) are provided free of charge on-site.
Trash Hero operates in 19 Thai cities, from Bangkok to islands like Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, and Pattaya.
