By: Manoah Kikekon
The Rotaract Club of Badagry, in Partnership with SEAL Initiative, marked World Cleanup Day 2026 by taking grassroots environmental education directly to the classroom. Centred around the theme “Strive for Five,” the initiative was crafted to give young students hands-on community service experience while cultivating a lifelong culture of environmental protection and responsible waste management.
The cleanup drive was held on Saturday at Samo Seje, Lagos State, drawing participation from over 50 students across four major private institutions: Ade Galaxy Academy, Samuel-Tin Okorunran School, Faithful City School, and Toskem School, with valued support from Olaokin Hospital.
Speaking on the core objective of the outreach, Rtr. Uthman Awesu, the Charter President of the Rotaract Club of Badagry, emphasised that community development requires active participation from the younger generation rather than sole reliance on the government.
“This is to contribute our part to community development, and this is to let the youths know that we have a role to play when we're looking towards a better society, and we can't expect the government to do the whole thing, and that is why in Rotaract we contributed our four T's: Time, Treasure, Thinking and Talent,” Rtr. Awesu stated.
Makinde Endurance, the Executive Director of the SEAL Initiative, urged young people to answer the call whenever environmental preservation efforts arise. He noted that instilling proper civic habits early ensures that maintaining a clean and healthy habitat becomes second nature.
“The youths should come out for cleanup at every time there's call for it, most importantly it's good we involve the younger ones in programmes like this for them to start seeing it from now that it is part of their responsibility to make their environment clean, because it's best to catch them young,” Endurance remarked, adding that the event also served as an open invitation for local youths to join Rotaract the dynamic youth wing of Rotary International.
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| Makinde Endurance |
Mr. James Oladipupo, the Principal of Toskem Group of Schools, encouraged his students to stay active in similar advocacy programs.
“I like to tell every student to make sure they are part of programs like this, as this will go a long way in determining our healthy living,” Mr Oladipupo noted.
Moving beyond physical waste collection, the program featured an enlightening environmental education session.
Facilitated by Azubike Emmanuel Ogechukwu, who recently spearheaded research on “Active Biomonitoring of Air Pollution in Badagry, Lagos State Using Bryophytes (Mosses)”, the seminar linked practical street-level cleanup to broader ecological science.
Ogechukwu walked the students through the critical health implications of air and land pollution, urging them to prioritise environmental sanitation as a vital pillar of public health and community survival.
By merging hands-on community service with expert scientific education, the Rotaract Club of Badagry’s World Cleanup Day 2026 outing has successfully laid a resilient foundation for the next generation of eco-conscious leaders in the region.