Stay tuned for the screening of the film "Clean Mountains" - an inspiring journey of dedication, inspiration and love for the mountains! After 25 years of high mountain clean-ups, volunteer work and many friendships made - it's time to celebrate the efforts of all volunteers with a short but inspiring film.
The film is 18 minutes long.
The "Garbage in the Backpack" initiative started in 1999 by a group of student volunteers from Stara Zagora, who like to go to the mountains together and organize clean-ups in the Pirin Mountains. At that time rubbish could be seen everywhere on the mountain trails, there was no hiker culture yet.
In the following years, volunteers, some of them already part of "For the Earth", continued the clean-up actions in the national parks. More and more volunteers from all over the country are getting involved, there is not as much trash on the trails anymore, but huge old and new dumps are being found around the lodges. The scope is expanding and actions are being done in nature parks as well as one in the Rhodope Mountains.
The campaign has covered most of Bulgaria's high mountain and inaccessible protected areas. In addition to removing over 130 tonnes of waste, including in the form of dilapidated buildings, the clean-up movement has attracted and engaged over 1,000 people - a community of people with shared values of caring for and protecting the mountains and nature.
The long-term campaign is also gradually turning into an initiative to reduce waste in the mountains for prevention purposes and thus the idea of "Clean Mountains" emerged.
"Clean Mountains" is aimed at working with institutions, businesses and organizations related to the mountains - national and nature parks, municipalities, the Bulgarian Tourist Society and NGOs.