WeCan Academy Leads 1,000 Youths in Mazingira Day Drive for Cleaner Nairobi

Macharia David 

Taifanews 

Environmental features 

More than 1,000 young people joined a clean-up and tree-planting campaign in Roysambu, Nairobi, on Saturday, with organisers urging residents to take responsibility for waste management instead of leaving the task to county authorities.

The exercise, led by WeCan Academy in partnership with the International Youth Fellowship (IYF) and Nairobi City County, involved cleaning public spaces along Thika Road, clearing drainage channels and planting trees to mark Mazingira Day.

Nairobi County Principal Environment Officer Maryvine Nyanchoka said the exercise collected 30 tonnes of solid waste, highlighting the impact of community participation in environmental conservation.

“Today, as a county government, we have partnered with WECAN Academy, which is part of our stakeholders, to celebrate Mazingira Day. We are here to share experiences and give our best as a county,” Nyanchoka said.

She warned that careless waste disposal could block drainage systems and increase the risk of flooding during heavy rains.

“Every time you litter, you do improper solid waste management, our drainages get full, and if it rains, like now we are preparing for El Nino rains, our drainages get filled with litter, bottles, they get blocked since storm water can’t flow hence flooding,” she said.

Nyanchoka also challenged residents who believe keeping Nairobi clean is solely the responsibility of county workers to change their attitude.

“You hear people say ‘watu wa kanjo watafanya’, but you see, if we have these numbers and we show people, this is what we do on daily basis, this is what we are supposed to be doing, the country becomes clean,” she said.

WeCan Academy Principal Aeneas Wanyonyi said the initiative aimed to encourage young people to take action rather than blame others for environmental problems.

“At WeCan Academy, we teach before any skill: change from ‘someone should do it’ to ‘I will do it’. This clean-up was a mindset class in action. Mazingira Day is not about one day of cleaning; it is about changing the heart that litters daily. A clean heart creates a clean environment,” he said.

The campaign also involved community members and county officials, with participants planting more than 5,000 trees, according to published reporting on the event.

WeCan Academy, formerly known as the Free Weekend Academy, is a free vacation training centre run by IYF that equips young people with practical skills, including media, digital technology, leadership and design, alongside character development.

The initiative sought to translate that training into community service by encouraging young people to demonstrate environmental responsibility through practical action.

Organisers said sustained progress would depend on residents disposing of waste responsibly, avoiding littering and caring for newly planted trees long after Mazingira Day.

The campaign reinforced the message that keeping Nairobi clean requires cooperation between residents, businesses, educational institutions and county authorities rather than reliance on occasional clean-up exercises.