Isara's Thailand Trash Clean-up '08

[PK]

Building on the success of last years trash clean-up projects, Isara will be going one step further this year by taking the campaign nationwide.

Last week we began the campaign by hand-making more than 100 signs which will be placed on 50 tuk-tuks (small taxis) around the local Nong Khai area. So far all the tuk-tuk drivers have agreed to help.



Next we will invite radio stations to air a :30 second public service announcement (created by DJ Ming!) which will encourage everyone listening to throw trash in the bins and also restate the same message that's on all the signs.

After that we will visit each school and speak with students about keeping their environment clean and invite them to various clean-up projects around Nong Khai. Similar to last year. If our campaign succeeds in Nong Khai we will expand our efforts to other areas of Thailand, including the islands and beaches.

Because of the amount of trash in Thailand, and very little environmental education, we feel this is one of our most important projects. We hope you will support our efforts by continuing to visit Isara.org.
pk

[Ginafish]

Nationwide would be Huge! I hope the response in Nong Khai is such that the campaign can expand! (When expanding to islands...is that another way of saying you'd like to go on vacation again?)

Happy Earth Day!

[KitKat]

  Wow!! This is a great project!! Looks like lots of volunteers are involved.
Keep up the good work!

Thanks Ginafish for the beautiful "Happy Earth Day" photo!!

HAPPY EARTH DAY Everyone!!

[thartley]

The sign hanging part of this project is going great!  We have not had one driver tell us no, and they even help tie the signs on.   

[Ming]

Great project. This help a lot cause the Tuk Tuk go around town and everywhere people will see the signs and read them because it looks different. Normally they make the signs beautiful with color but our signs are simple but interesting.

[thartley]

Normally they make the signs beautiful with color but our signs are simple but interesting.

[Ginafish]

I think those signs look great! The ILC volunteers did a stupendous job! The bright blue is an Isara copyrighted color and the bold lettering makes people notice. (esp since there aren't normally posters on tuk tuks anyway. )

[thartley]

I'm going to try to upload a few pics from the tuk tuks here.  Hope they arent too big.... Laurie took most of these today I think.  It wasn't toooo hot today, so we were walking down the Mee Chai main drag and hitting a good number of tuk tuks along the way.

[KitKat]

The signs look fantastic!! What do the signs say?  I know they'll get a lot of attention.    Great job volunteers!!

[thartley]

Ming or PK can correct me if I am wrong, but the signs say "Love Nong Khai, Love Clean, Please Put Trash in Bins"   It sounds better when spoken in Thai, but I believe that is the English translation.  And then on the back of the signs is Isara's information, phone number, etc.

 

[KitKat]

  Thanks thartley, and for any foreigners, curiosity alone will aid them in knowing what they say.  (Just like me!)   
I also understand it's the locals they're trying to reach and teach. 

[Jennie]

pics from mine and ming's mission outside tesco yesterday. surprisingly easy, the tuktuk drivers all helped to put the signs up!

[Ginafish]

surprisingly easy, the tuktuk drivers all helped to put the signs up!

Well, they WERE asked about the signs by two attractive young women! If they didn't offer to help, they'd be crazy!

[thartley]

I posted a long while back about the International Coastal Clean-up project that the Ocean Conservancy does every year.  This year it is scheduled for Sept 20th.  I wonder if we could get a group together in Thailand to participate in it this year.  September is far enough away to be doable....maybe. hmmmm....

[thartley]

We went hanging more signs today and took alittle extra help.  Sean has been busy being a substitute teacher at another local school, so today he finally got to go with us, Ming went along with a camera, and we had Gik and her sister Guk helping out too.  It was a hot day, as you can see from our young volunteers...   

     

[Soulessaint]

The signs look GREAT!!!! Go Isara Go Gbya

[PK]

The two little girls, Gik and Guk, did a great job. As soon as a tuk tuk would stop they'd start putting signs on it. After coming back to the ILC we let them watch CARS, the cartoon by Pixar, instead of studying. As they say, "All work and no play..."

This week we'll make the public service announcement for the radio and start airing it. We'll also be making many more signs, since the response was much better than we anticipated.

Of course all of this advertising stuff is just phase one of our clean-up plan. The real fun will begin next month when we start picking up all the trash.

Thanks for everyone's help and support.

[Ginafish]

Okay People! Start clicking so Isara can purchase trash bags! Spread the word!

[M3R1IN]

that is such a good idea, I am glad the Tuk tuk drivers are co-operating.
It will be interesting to see what happens with this.

[thartley]

I think the trash collectors here are ninja.  I NEVER see anyone actually collecting trash from bins. However, I have gone downstairs here and put a sackful of plastic bottles by the trash bin, gone back upstairs to collect my stuff to leave and by the time I get back downstairs, ALL the trash is gone.  Out of the bin and off the ground.

[Sean]

a few shots from last week...

   

[KitKat]

Gik and Guk have really helped a lot with the signs.  A big Thank You! to them!!!
And finally a photo of PK and Ming! Thanks Sean. I want pics of PK, just like your mom wants pics of you. 

[PK]

We went to the radio station last night at about 9:30pm to make the public service announcement (psa). The DJ said that he would finish making the :30 second spot sometime Friday morning. Can't wait to hear it!

Once we have the psa we'll go around to all the radio stations in Nong Khai and ask if they'll play it on the radio through-out the day. (Two have already agreed to play it!)

The signs we placed on the sides of tuk tuks have been getting a lot of attention. We'll be making 100 more signs this weekend. Eventually, every tuk tuk in Nong Khai will have one.

[Jennie]

have heard the radio commercial and it sounds great! really professional and cute. although i can't say i fully understand it..

good job guys!

[PK]

Thanks, Jennie!

Here's the Public Service Announcement we just received a few moments ago from the local radio station.

MP3 - 815kb (Right click the link and "Save as")
http://www.isara.org/media/Rok-Nong-Khai.mp3


Translation (Ming, please correct me if I'm wrong):
Boy: Hello, Kwan.

Girl: Hey! How was your trip to Australia?

Boy: It was excellent. Their country is very clean and livable. But I'm happy to be back to our country and I want to make our country cleaner and more livable too.

Girl: That's not difficult at all. When we see trash on the ground we can pick it up and put it in a bin. And if we have trash in our hand don't throw it on the ground but put it in the right place.

Boy: Yes, you're right. If everyone can do this our country and our town will be more clean and livable and more people will come to travel.

Boy/Girl: Don't forget! Love Nong Khai. Love cleanliness. Throw trash in the bin.


Thank you to Ming and to DJ Tong for making this great public service announcement for us.