Fatima Halloum
During their daily walks around Jubilee, 15-year-old Sonnet and her 12-year-old sister Vidisha noticed something alarming.
Along a paddock fence where nearby cows grazed was a collection of rubbish.
Fearing the plastic would be harmful to animals and natural flora and fauna, Sonnet and Vidisha made a resolution.
“We decided that whenever we had time, five days a week, we would go down to the area and pick rubbish up,” Sonnet said.
“It’s very important because we live amongst nature and nature does not have hands, it doesn’t have a voice.”
“I think it’s our responsibility as human beings to go out and make a difference, metaphorically be the voice of something which cannot speak.”
The teenagers are encouraging other members of the community to take their own little steps to protect our environment and wildlife.
“The first thing is quite simply having the eye for detail to look in front of them and to know, ‘there’s this bit of plastic in my yard, I must pick it up and throw it in the bin’.”
“Go out and spend five minutes picking rubbish up, even once a week. If you have 50 hands instead of one, I believe the difference would be severe.”
Sonnet and Vidisha said they were inspired by their mum, who would often stop to pick up the rubbish she would see when the family was out.
The girls say the support they receive from the jubilee community motivates them.
“People often say to me and my sister ‘you’re doing a good job’ and that encourages us very much.”
