More than 10 years ago, the Plastic Cup team set the goal of collecting waste with the help of volunteers, allowing clean river water to flow downstream. In the early years, the main focus was on building boats from plastic bottles and collecting litter during the competition. The Plastic Cup volunteers, the “Plastic pirates,” fought nettles and mosquitoes while gathering bottles in the floodplain forests. During our summer competitions, we removed several tons of waste from the Tisza River and its tributaries. Later, we also learned how to properly sort and manage different types of waste.
Most river waste is recyclable, so it is not enough to simply collect it — we must also return it to the circular economy. We share our experience not only with our volunteers, but also with the younger generation. We visit schools, meet children, and encourage them to stop river pollution. And we do this not only in Hungary, but also across the borders, because together we want to achieve even more! Our goal is nothing less than eliminating the direct cause of the problem and stopping the flood of waste.
