Anas Seko has committed himself to creating a cleaner environment & once clean, he wants it to stay that way 

Nothing gets Anas Seko‘s blood boiling more than seeing someone throw garbage out in the street. The 27-year-old photographer and communications professional has committed himself to create a cleaner environment-and once clean, he wants it to stay that way.

He dubbed himself “the garbage collector.” His biggest challenge is sensitising the people around him to do the right thing. To do so, he has built a toolkit for 21st-century activism: he stages art shows and one-man performances; creates short movies; engages in advocacy, and makes the best possible use of social networking opportunities.

In 2019, Seko’s mission began with a push to clean up the Ganvié pier in his neighbourhood.

Ganvié is a lake city built on stilts and is one of Benin Republic’s top tourist attractions. Its pier is the gateway to the 35,000-person settlement and is also a vital hub for fishmongers and other traders. For years, the pier was badly polluted as waste was indiscriminately dumped in the area.

Friends and relatives answered the call, and with a small team and limited resources, the cleaning started.

Ganvié, sometimes referred to by the locals as the “Venice of Africa,” is considered an important cultural and historical heritage by most Beninese. So, the move got a lot of attention and was covered by the local media. This made Seko famous and well-known all over the country.

Anas Seko now spearheads a new initiative called Mon Anniversaire Ma Patrie, or, My Birthday, My Country. The initiative encourages everyone to volunteer for a positive action performed on their birthday.

People are getting together on their birthdays to clean up beaches, streets, and college campuses of discarded plastic bags because of this project.

According to Seko, education around a campaign is vital. Often, solutions are closer than people realise—all that is needed is information.

“In Ganvié, for example, there was a small garbage collector just behind the fish market, which prevented people from spilling waste nearby,” he recalled.

His plea is that education on environmental issues be introduced into schools’ curricula at the earliest stage possible so that the next generation will be entirely eco-friendly. To get young people to care, he puts on art shows in elementary schools, makes funny videos, and uses social media a lot.

With COP 27 looming, the young activist has his own opinion on the impact of major international events. “The COP is a very good initiative. Very good resolutions are adopted, but there is a huge gap between resolutions and their implementation on the field,” he said.

That’s where he comes in. Using a suite of tools that need not cost a great deal, he believes that local communities can be educated to demand more from their government and force corporates to keep carbon emissions and pollution in check. Until COP resolutions can be implemented, “the garbage collector” will continue using all the tools at his disposal to get things done “on the ground”.

Photo Credit: Anas Seko

Story Credit: Bird Story Agency