Young volunteers care for the environment one bag of rubbish at a time
Young volunteers clean up parks and beaches with Wastebusters.
Published on 19 February 2026
Released by: NSW Volunteering
Source: https://www.nsw.gov.au/community-services/volunteering/celebrate-our-volunteers/volunteer-stories/young-volunteers-care-for-environment-one-bag-of-rubbish-at-a-time
Jiayi (16) and Leron (16) were friends from school and met Olivia (15) at OzGreen program ‘Youth Leading the World’ conference in 2024.
“The program wants to inspire young people to take action, it has lots of getting to know you activities, and Leron and I realised quickly we had a lot in common with Olivia. We were all motivated to initiate local action to help the environment. We learned about pollution and the many downstream impacts of rubbish pollution. That’s where our inspiration came from.” Says Jiayi.
The trio founded Wastebusters Sydney, a youth-led movement and organisation that runs impactful clean ups around Sydney, mostly focused on the Northern Beaches. Since its inception in late 2024, Wastebusters has held more than 20 clean-ups and has a growing membership of young people and the public who volunteer their time to make a positive impact on the environment.
The concept is simple – volunteers focus on one location and spend two hours collecting rubbish before sorting it into what can be recycled.
Christopher is a dedicated Wastebuster, known to consistently ask in the WhatsApp group – when’s the next one? Collecting rubbish might not sound like the most fun or glamorous way to spend a weekend but Christopher explains why he loves being a part of it.
“There’s so much satisfaction that comes with our clean ups. We’re bettering ourselves and making a measurable and visible impact on our local environment. The community response is really encouraging, people see what we’re doing and offer encouragement, sometimes joining in.”
Wastebusters makes a point of making the events enjoyable. Jiayi explains:
“Sugary incentives… aka treats, are a crucial part of the events. And it’s about connection, we’re a youth-led organisation so participants have a lot in common and enjoy getting to know each other, spending time doing an activity that is meaningful together.”
The fun doesn’t mean the work isn’t effective. On Clean Up Australia Day in 2025, 51 Wastebusters volunteers collected over 15.5kg of rubbish in just an hour, consisting of four buckets of soft plastics, four buckets of plastic bottles and take-away containers, four boxes of paper and cardboard, 50 paper straws and over 250 cigarette butts.
Wastebusters is also strategic. In addition to clean ups, they have held multiple excursions for members to learn more about waste and pollution and prioritise collaborating with other organisations that have similar goals. Jiayi has also represented Wastebusters at a 2025 Climate Action Week panel, further spreading the Wastebusters message in the hope of inspiring more people to join the cause.
“All of us on the leadership team manage to sneak Wastebusters into a lot of our conversations, we’re so proud of our organisation and our volunteers.” Jiayi says.
“We have a lot of ideas about where to go next. We want to keep building community connections and move to do clean ups in more areas. We also want to build in more incentives, finding sponsors for our treats for volunteers – imagine free ice cream!”
“Carl Sagan’s quote about the earth as the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known really inspires us. Without the blue dot, nothing else can exist. We have no planet b. The simple truth about it is we need it, and we want to do what we can to protect it.”
Wastebusters is a youth‑led non‑profit dedicated to environmental action. It raises awareness, support sustainable practices, and inspires people to care for the planet through simple, everyday acts of environmental compassion. Wastebusters contributes to SDGs 3 Good Health and Wellbeing, 6 Clean Water and Sanitation, 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities, 12 Responsible Consumption and Production, 13 Climate Action and 14 Life Below Water.
