[Photo credit to Paul Ryu]

Six students from several countries  volunteered to promote the environment through a new and distinctive way: Plogging.

An advantage of “plogging” is that this activity can be done through exercising.

People are aware that  volunteering for the environment is needed but don’t participate because they think it is boring.

This activity can change people’s perception, especially for the people who are passionate about exercising.

The Plogging campaign is a fitness movement that was made in Sweden in 2016. The name “Plogging '' is a combination of two words ‘plocka upp’ and ‘jogging’.

As the name indicates, plogging is basically picking up litter along the way while jogging. 

People who plog typically wear gloves and carry around a bag with them to put litter while they are jogging. 

They also use social media to bring popularity to this idea to encourage others to be involved in this activity.

Plogging has become well-known over the world as it  is getting recognized as a method to not only improve one’s health but also improve the environment of the community.

There is currently a group of 6 students trying to promote the protection of the environment and spread the idea that volunteering can be fun depending on how we participate to the people.

The group’s name is PLOG (Planet of Litter-free Outreach Group).

This group consists of 6 members including the leader/app developer Wonjun Lim.

Wonjun Lim, the app developer who has been leading the activity was interviewed.

Q: “ How did you get to know such an activity (plogging) and come up with this group?”

A:Personally, I like to walk around and listen to music.  While I was walking, it was easy to find 10+ trash. As a solution, I created an application that shows the location of trash on the map, which will ideally show the “trash concentration”. In modern society, picking up trash while jogging can benefit both human health and the environment. Hence, I decided to use the application to make a plog group.

Q: “Were there any obstacles while making this group?”

A: I had a hard time finding the solution to the littering problem. As a mere student, it was impossible to install trash bins or initiate campaigns. However, I tried to use my passion, coding, to overcome this challenge by developing a website.

Q: “How does your Plogging app work?”

A: If the member of the group uploads the photo of trash with a location tag, the website updates the photo of trash on the map. By collecting the data, the Plog map can show the ideal place to plog for the users.

Q: “What is the message that you want to give people through this activity?”

A: I want to say that even mere students can impact the community using their abilities.

Q: “Are you planning on making the team larger and if so, how would you achieve it?

A:Everyone can join the Facebook page (PLOG project) and join the plog community, helping the environment. 

As stated, the team led by Wonjun Lim is planning on gathering more people, and this creative project will be ongoing.

I am concluding this article expecting a brighter society where people actively participate to be a part of plogging community.