Erasmus Students Clean River

On Tuesday afternoon, five Erasmus students at AUBG took an hour of their day between classes and club meetings to pick up trash at the river underneath the bridge downstream of campus.

The area is a common place for students to leave campus and spend time with nature. The babbling brook accompanies the lush vegetation making it ideal for smoking cigarettes and listening to music on breaks.

However, recently Sveti Dimitar Solunski Boulevard had become a bridge over troubled waters as litter constellated the area. 

Many students spend time there, most of them likely leaving more trash, if not taking only what they brought with them.

The river cleanup was not a part of an event organized by Sustainability Club or perhaps Xaia Hiking.

In fact, these students were not part of a club at all. They’re just a group of friends who decided to take action.

Led by Naoise Tsang, an Erasmus student from Ireland, the group brought their own trash bags and gloves to the bridge to clean. They played music and pulled paper, plastic bags, candy wrappers, bottles, cans, and cigarette cartons out of the river and off of the ground.

All five students present have only been at AUBG since the beginning of this semester, all of whom will only be here until December. Two months was enough for these students to fall in love with the place. “We love the river, we wanted to give back and say thank you,” Naoise said.

By the end of the cleanup, the sun had begun to set, casting golden hour light onto the newly clean area. The students exclaimed their gratitude, saying that they thought of the beautiful sight as a reward for all their hard work.

The river is a defining feature on campus, and a piece of the city all students share. 

“We all come down here for a reason, it’s a great vibe, so we’re just trying to keep it that way,” Naoise said.