Simple individual actions can make a huge difference to improve our world, writes Copy Editor Colin Simpson
I took an early morning stroll on the beach the other day and spotted a young woman walking along the shoreline picking up litter.
She was carrying a large plastic bag in which she placed discarded cans, bottles, wrappers and other rubbish.
What a great thing to do, I thought. She wore trainers and orange and black exercise gear and was listening to an iPod as she strode briskly across the sand. Every few steps she would reduce her pace a little, reach down, snatch up another piece of trash and place it in the bag.
I was impressed by the way she had incorporated the collection of litter into her morning exercise routine.
How often have you noticed a piece of unsightly rubbish on one of Dubai's beautiful beaches and just shaken your head and walked on without picking it up? Well that was not good enough for this woman.
She deserved praise for more reasons than one. Litter is not just ugly - items such as plastic bags can be harmful to marine life. For example turtles, which are endangered in the Gulf, can die a slow and painful death if they swallow a bag. Plastic stays in an animal's gut, preventing digestion.
Birds and many other creatures - which often mistake plastic bags for jellyfish - can be similarly affected.
Many of us become worked up about major world problems, and not just environmental ones such the conservation of wildlife or global warming. Many care passionately about poverty, or the lack of educational opportunities, or the fact that easily treated diseases kill hundreds of thousands every year.
Why doesn't the government, or the United Nations, or some other body do something about it? We think this and then, just as we do when confronted with a piece of litter washed up on the shore, we pass on.
Of course some big problems require the sort of big solutions that can be achieved only by governments and international organisations.
But, as the lady on the beach demonstrated, each of us can do our bit to help. Per haps we should all think of individual actions we can take to make the world a little better.
There are many simple ways we could help to improve the environment, for instance. We could turn down the air-conditioning a couple of degrees to cut our energy usage, for example, or buy a smaller car that produces fewer harmful emissions.
Likewise we can do our bit to help ease social problems, either through charitable donations or voluntary work. By contributing to Dubai Cares, for example, we can assist in transforming the lives of the million underprivileged children who the campaign aims to educate. What could be more worthwhile?
Or take poverty. A couple I know spend much of their time collecting donations of food which they distribute to the needy. They, too, prove it is possible for individuals to make a difference.
There are many, many other examples, as our Unsung Heroes feature demonstrates every week.
Sometimes we all despair of people and think there are too many worthless liars and cowards in the world. But seeing a simple, selfless act such as a young woman picking up litter on a beach can restore your faith in humanity.
© Emirates Today 2007
