2019 Accomplishments

Happy New Year!

As we head into 2020, allow us a look back at all we achieved in 2019 with the help of our members and supporters.

NGO status

After a year and four months of being an active organization, we applied and were successfully granted our NGO (non-profit organization that operates independently of any government) status on April 23, 2019 – a huge milestone for us!

This year we were also awarded Best Environmental Awareness NGO – Cyprus by the European Enterprise Awards and nominated for Environmental Organization of the Year by Elafi Animal Welfare Awards.

9 Cleanups

A special mention for the Amathos River cleanup on 21 September, World Cleanup Day (cleanup video here). Thank you to everyone who helped collect 133 bags of trash and recyclables in just 2 hours. The heavy rain months before the cleanup turned the channel into a torrent, and all this would have been washed into the sea without our efforts.

We also held cleanups in Limassol at Molos, Karnagio Beach, Lady’s Mile Beach (twice, once as a public event and once with Silverline primary school students), a cleanup with TLC School in Paphos, Grammiko Park with TSYS in Nicosia, and our biggest cleanup yet at Zakaki Marsh where 200 volunteers collected 400 bags of trash, 200 car tires, 5 couches, 5 mattresses, a toilet, and many more items you wouldn’t expect to find only a few hundred meters away from one of the most popular beaches in Limassol (Lady’s Mile Beach).

Awareness events

We held the first Love the Earth festival in Limassol, and awareness events at Germasogeia farmers market, Etherio bio stores, Cyprus University of Technology, and more.

Check out this message from one student about the impact we made on him after one of our beach cleanup field trips! Thank you to our volunteer speakers who gave presentations at numerous schools in Nicosia, Limassol and Paphos – from kindergartens to high schools!

We attended two tree planting events (3,000 trees planted), two climate strikes and showed the documentary Before the Flood.

Some articles about Palm oil, Decluttering, Menstrual Cups and Black Friday tips were added to our blog.

Putting the pressure on

We designed a variety of eco posters for businesses interested in encouraging customers to be environmentally conscious or to reward their customers for already being conscious by making choices to reduce their waste.

Reducing Produce Bags
Single-use bags, weather plastic or paper, are generated a massive amount of waste. Encourage your customers to bring their own produce bags!
Keeping Beaches Clean
If you have a business located on the seaside, consider putting this sign up to keep your area clean and keep your customers happy!
Reducing Straws
For most people and beverages, straws are not necessary to use. To reduce your straw waste, have your customers request paper straws only if needed.
Reducing Cups
Far too many single-use cups are being used globally. Encourage your customers to bring their own to keep the planet clean!
Reducing Food Containers
Display this sign to encourage your customers to bring their own containers when purchasing food, or raw meat or fish.

We launched petitions to ban balloons and all plastic carrier bags in Cyprus. If you haven’t signed and shared yet, please do so by clicking here.

We wrote an open letter to the bottled water companies of Cyprus to encourage them to switch their bottle packaging from plastic to an environmentally friendly alternative.

Encouraging the use of eco-products

We’ve made alternatives to plastic items available in various locations across Cyprus. Click here to check them out. Some of our favorites…
  • Alpha Mega, A. Sophocleous & Sons Supermarket, Etherio Bio Stores, and many more now offer reusable produce bags!
  • St. Raphael Report & Marina offers eco-friendly hotel amenities to their guests!

LMCG turned 2

Last but not least, we celebrated our two-year anniversary on 17 December.

We are making baby steps to progress. The individual and community support given to us throughout 2019 has been greatly appreciated. We are very proud of the progress that has been made thus far and we aim to accomplish much more in 2020.

A big THANK YOU to all who have been following our journey. It is thrilling to see so many people supporting our mission of making a “green” Cyprus. You’re welcome to contribute to our cause by:

  • Becoming a member. We are a small team of volunteers that need as much help as we can! Please click here for more information about membership.
  • Making a donation. We are an organization that is not funded by the EU or Cyprus government. A donation, no matter how big or small, is helpful to allow us to continue our actions.

Transfer details:
Hellenic Bank:
Account Name: LET’S MAKE CYPRUS GREEN
Account Number: 201-10-875181-01
IBAN: CY58 0050 0201 0002 0110 8751 8101
BIC: HEBACY2N

Stay tuned to see what we accomplish in 2020!

Let’s Make Cyprus Green

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