Environmental activists Kirk Kunihiro and Caleb Ray-Robertson are blasting down the volume of litter at festivals in the United States of America. The mass gatherings at music events generate massive amounts of trash. During Coachella in 2017, approximately 1 612 tonnes of rubbish were produced. That’s why Kunihiro and Ray-Robertson founded Trash Pirates, a collective that is ridding these stages of waste. “Our mission is to inspire change and tangible actions to better our world, our environment, and our ecology,” Ray-Robertson says.
Draped in recycled garments made from litter, Trash Pirates is made up of artists, volunteers and environmentalists. Through their waste management initiative, Waste Naughts, these enthusiasts organise initiatives to ensure event spaces are left clean. Music concerts attract thousands of people, and consequently rubbish such as glow sticks, cigarette butts, plastic and paper cups invades the environment. “All that waste needs to be managed sustainably,” Kunihiro says. The group tours around events where they share with attendees how to sort trash, which is then distributed to recycling partners, as well as offer collecting and composting services. Between 2017 and 2019, they worked with TerraCycle to repurpose over 200 000 cigarette butts into products such as toys for children.
With their campaigns and projects, these activists are encouraging event attendees to embrace the cleanliness of the venue as much as the entertainment. Keeping recreational spaces pollution free is a collective responsibility. “My message to people out there is be aware of how your actions affect our environment and ultimately affect our life-sustaining systems on this planet,” Ray-Robertson says.
Footage and photos by Moon Mandel were used in the creation of this film.
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