In July, Smart Group volunteered with Thames 21 to help clean up the Capital’s river system. According to Thames 21, each year in the Capital, alongside the Port of London Authority, they remove a minimum of 200 tonnes of waste from the river, much of which is plastic.

In order to assist in combatting this issue, a group of 14 staff members from our Green Smarties committee paid a visit to the Leaside Trust where they participated in the Canoe Litter Picking initiative, and supported in restoring the natural environment. This initiative contributes to addressing two of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals: Goal 6 – Clean Water and Sanitation, and Goal 13 – Climate Action. With the arrival of Oceandiva London, and the close intertwinement of our business with the River Thames, it was important for us to make some time within the busy summer season to get involved with this initiative and help clean up our venue’s home.

Armed with bin bags and graptors, the day started with a dryland demo from the Leaside Trust team, followed by a briefing from Thames 21. The team was then split into two groups, with one team focusing on clearing any litter and waste out of the canal, whilst the rest were given the task of removing floating pennywort, a highly invasive plant which threatens other life forms in the ecosystem.

At Smart Group, we believe wholeheartedly that good environmental practice is also good economic practice, and we are committed to achieving both at a local level and within communities where we can make a positive impact. As a business we are determined to minimise our impact on the environment in our daily activities, whether that’s through using local suppliers in our catering, or simply printing less, however, we are also keen to get involved in more initiatives like this to amplify our impact and make a real difference. We all thoroughly enjoyed our day cleaning up the river, and look forward to working with Thames 21 again in the future!