We at Pristine Earth Collective believe it is important to acknowledge and when possible reward the dedication and hard work displayed by the group of Youths that we work with in Gugulethu. Time and again they volunteer for cleanups in their community, even though it’s hard work and often the weather conditions are less than pleasant. They also show a persistent interest in protecting the environment and are helping to raise awareness in their community about this. Our most recent outing with the group was a hike in the Newlands forest in mid-June.

Access to the forest is free but transport creates a barrier to activities like this to these youths, who deserve time to enjoy the beauty of our natural environment. Many of us may take an opportunity like this for granted. But there was so much interest in the outing, that Pamela from The Gugulethu CAN (our community liaison) had to select those who have participated in the most recent cleanups to attend, while we plan another such outing for the remaining group of youths.

It was a beautiful, sunny day and we all enjoyed the clean forest air. The youths appreciated the picturesque river and mighty trees and many selfies were taken with this perfect backdrop. The older boys enjoyed some trail running and were keen to summit the mountain, but since there were some young children in the group, we decided to stop for a picnic lunch in the magnificent surroundings. It was a wonderful day for all and the PEC team is gratified to be able to take these very deserving community champions on an enjoyable outing in nature.

A wonderful day!