We named Al Numeira Environmental Association after a nearby wadi. As such, it is a special place, close to our hearts. So when a group of international volunteers and students expressed an interest in hiking and camping in the area, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to visit the wadi and do a little good in the process.
William, NEA’s founder, his two school-aged children, four German students, one British student, two American volunteers, one Russian volunteer, and one Norwegian volunteer all hiked through the wadi, and camped underneath the stars. We were lucky enough to see by the night of a glowing full moon.
When we woke up the next morning, however, we found that the area we had chosen as our campsite was covered in garbage. But we had come prepared! We had packed garbage bags with the intent to collect litter. We filled an entire bag just with trash from our immediate area, including broken glass, used diapers, and tissues.
Later that day, as we hiked back out, the volunteers collected more trash. Many families were picknicking at the entrance to the wadi, and we hope that our example encouraged them to pack their garbage up and take it home to throw away. Unfortunately, there is no garbage bin at the wadi. The implementation of such a receptical in this area and other hiking areas around Jordan will be paramount to keeping Jordan beautiful. We would even like to see separate containers for recylcling, but until recycling infrastructure is in place in Jordan, we feel that at least a trash bin is a good first step.
Now that we have seen the impact of so many humans on our wadi, one of our next goals is to get a trash bin in place, and hope that, as we continue to pick up trash in the area, it will influence others to to so as well.
Al Numeira Environmental Association 