In his book ‘’Walking the walk’’ by the late Eric Pike, a former Anglican bishop in Gqeberha, he describes his adventurous 200 kilometre prayer walk with his supporters through all 60 wards in Nelson Mandela Bay. It took him 20 days during November 2019.
The context is relevant, especially as we prepare a litter clean-up campaign across Nelson Mandela Bay to mark Mandela Week.
The ‘‘Nehemiah Prayer Walk’’ as described in the book, is a physical walk that includes deep contemplation and prayer.
It was a way that Eric Pike connected with God, his surroundings and God’s creation.
The ‘‘Nehemiah Prayer Walk’’ is based on the book of Nehemiah in the Old Testament.
The book of Nehemiah opens with the dire living conditions, broken wall and infrastructure surrounding Jerusalem.
Nehemiah was an everyday person and when he observed the city’s ruins he wept and began to fervently pray for positive change.
He walked the talk, especially about creation. He did not wait for someone else to “fix the problem,” he did not criticise from the side but instead rolled up his sleeves and got on with the work.
In Nehemiah 2: 18, God unfolds a plan in Nehemiah’s mind, and he began to strategically rebuild the city.
The process of restoration was hard and tedious, but his obedience led to tangible restoration, and he ended up being the governor of Jerusalem.
Along with the leaders of Transformation Christian Network, including Trevor Jennings, the late Mfundisi Thobile Sonjica and many others, Eric Pike surveyed ‘’the broken city’’, with its infrastructure, poverty, lack of service delivery, dire living conditions of the citizens and started to fervently pray for positive change and restoration.
In chapter seven of the book, ‘’Rubbish, rubble and a broken city’’, Eric writes about the harsh reality of plastic and rubble strewn across Nelson Mandela Bay.
This resonates deeply with diverse stakeholders which have united to educate people about litter and to clean up the Bay.
It is time that all citizens become activists in support of the work that the environmental non-governmental organisations have been doing for years, with their regular clean-ups.
Churches should encourage their congregants to be part of the solution.
There are approximately one hundred verses in the Bible that talk about protection of the environment.
Christians therefore have a duty to preserve and nurture the environment.
Mandela Week, 17 – 23 July 2023 is the next quarterly collaborative clean-up, and we call on every citizen, club, business, church and religious group in Nelson Mandela Bay to participate in it.
We especially need the practical help of corporate businesses and SMMEs to register as hosts.
Pick any spot on the map, arrive with a crew and heavy-duty equipment and tackle the really bad mountains of waste and rubbish.
The call-to-action by collaborating stakeholders is a necessary one, when we consider the amount of litter entering the streets of Gqeberha every day.
As we have all seen, the recent heavy rainfall has shone the spotlight on the broken stormwater drainage system across Nelson Mandela Bay.
Blocked stormwater drainage systems, caused by illegal dumping, litter, and debris have contributed to devastating flash floods.
They continue to threaten the lives and livelihood of residents and communities here.
Sustainable Seas Trust (SST) is an organisation that works for all the communities of Africa who live alongside or are dependent on the healthy coastal environment and the sea for their food, income, and their wellbeing, and with a particular focus on uplifting those most vulnerable to the effects of marine degradation, in both the immediate and long-term.
SST’s primary work centres around the reduction of waste in the environment. Huge piles of litter and illegally dumped rubbish is not an unusual scene in Nelson Mandela Bay and if the trend continues, we will be living in a very polluted environment with catastrophic impacts on human health and the economy.
Contrary to widespread belief, there is something we all can do in our personal capacities about the situation.
Waste is a valuable resource that can be collected and sold to buy-back centres, earning an income for individuals and households.
There are amazing swop-shop initiatives that are hosted by churches and schools all over Nelson Mandela Bay.
Households that do not need to earn an income from waste, are starting to separate recyclables for informal waste collectors on municipal collection day.
This helps to facilitate the collection of recyclables through the informal sector and give individuals a boost in their income. It also reduces the amount of litter in the streets on collection day, as general waste is not disturbed.
No one person, organisation, church, school, or business can do this on their own, and so we invite you to join us on Mandela Day, 17 - 23 July 2023.
Join us in one of two ways:
1. To be a host, register your business, religious, sport, social groups or as an individual visit the Operation Clean Spot page at
https://sst.org.za/maps/operation-clean-spot/
Just select your spot on the map, clean up, and tell us about it!
2. If you prefer not to host, then you can join an existing clean-up hosted by the currently
registered partners. All you will need to do is search for your nearest location on the ‘Operation Clean Spot Map.’
To clean up the metro, let us start in one spot! For more information or help with registering your clean-up, please contact us at ocs@sstafrica.org.za or 076 271 4927.
Alison van Tonder is a professional writer and curriculum developer who produces content for public, business and theological use. She is the business owner of Visional Choice and lives in Gqeberha.
Dr Stacey Webb is the Executive Director of Sustainable Seas Trust (SST) in Gqeberha. She is a passionate conservationist and scientist by training and joined SST, to be part of creating “a future where the people of Africa and her seas flourish together.”