Environment
Beach Buddies Wins Global Award
The Isle of Man charity was voted the winner in one of five categories at a high profile event in Trondheim
The Beach Buddies team in Norway last night. From left: Wendy Gawne, Rob Gawne, Bill Dale, Carol Pickering, Ian Pickering
Beach Buddies won one of the world’s top environment honours at an awards ceremony last night.
The Isle of Man charity was voted the winner in one of five categories at a high profile event in Trondheim and praised for its pioneering educational work in schools and with young people.
‘Energy Globe highlighted how Beach Buddies had created a sustainable and efficient system of engaging with the community to clean the Isle of Man’s beaches to standards which no other country has achieved.’
The award particularly focused on the charity’s strong links with the Isle of Man’s schools and its education programme encouraging young people to take practical steps to protect the environment.
Bill added: ‘From the very beginning in 2006 we immediately saw that children wanted to be involved and they genuinely loved the chance to race down the beaches to collect rubbish. Since then every single school in the Isle of Man has been involved regularly numerous times a year in cleaning up beaches with Beach Buddies – and not just on beaches but also their own school grounds and everywhere inland, such as parks, plantations, footpaths, hills, pavements, rivers, playgrounds – everywhere.
‘Today in the Isle of Man, it’s now considered anti-social to throw litter in the streets – or anywhere – and we like to think we have played a major part in making this happen. The Isle of Man and its people are unique in the world for this way of thinking and the Energy Globe Awards have recognised this.
‘This is just an amazing, amazing moment for Beach Buddies and we want to say thank you to every single person who has ever picked up a piece of rubbish. This award is for us all.’
