World Environment Day - 2025
World Environment Day – June 5, 2025 Venue: Canaan Estate Community Hall & Nairobi Dam – Seafar Area Organized by: ETCO through the Ngong River Regeneration Network – Zone 2
The celebration drew a remarkable turnout of 420 participants, including Climate Worx Mtaani cohorts from Nyayo Highrise, and community members from Kibera and Lang’ata and was graced by notable guests, including: Lang’ata ACC, Mr. Waweru, Nyayo Highrise Ward Silanga Village Ass. Chief, Kennedy, SportPesa CSR Director - Willis Ojwang, Nondescripts RFC Coach - Ben Nyambu, Pinetote Founder - Stormy Odhiambo, Representatives from Nairobi Rivers Commission’s Secretariat: Madam Janet, Augustine, and Zubeda, among others.
Activities Highlights 1. Community Sensitization Program - we began with an interactive community sensitization session at Canaan Estate Community Hall, focusing on the importance of environmental conservation, Sustainable waste management & the need for collective action to protect our local ecosystems.
2. Tree Planting Session - A tree planting exercise followed, held between Nairobi Dam and the Seafar Apartments area. This space has been reclaimed by the Ngong River Regeneration Network – Zone 2 with a vision of transforming it into a community park. • Trees Planted: 380 indigenous and ornamental trees • Goal: To rehabilitate the riverside ecosystem and create a green urban space for community recreation.
3. Clean-Up Activity - The final major activity was a clean-up exercise around Nairobi Dam. This was also a research initiative aimed at quantifying the amount of waste entering the dam through a single tributary after rainfall.
Waste Collected: Approximately 1 tonne of sorted waste, including plastics, organic debris, and other pollutants.
Partnership and Support - We are deeply grateful to the partners and supporters who made this event a success through their participation. These partners/participants offered onsite, online, technical & financial Support. They included: SportPesa, Lang’ata Local Water Forum (LLWF), Kibera Community Emergency Response Team (KCERT), Andolo Bridge Community (ABC) , Mazingira Women Initiative , Climate Awareness Defenders, Milango – From Mathare, Nondescripts RFC and Players, Pinetote, Kibera Talking, Umande Trust, Lashes by Shazz, Nairobi Rivers Commission (NRC), Beyond The Scars, County Government Representatives – ACC & Ass. Chief, Haki , Rotary Club Nairobi – Connect, Power Engineers , Ecologists Without Borders (EcoWB).
Conclusion
The World Environment Day celebrations not only showcased the power of community action but also strengthened partnerships focused on restoring our environment. The success of the tree planting, clean-up, and sensitization activities is a testament to what we can achieve through collaboration and shared purpose.
We remain committed to our long-term goal of reviving the Nairobi Dam and regenerating Ngong River tributaries into healthy ecosystems and safe public spaces for current and future generations.
Together, we can beat plastic pollution and restore our planet.
Engaging Children through Feeding Program
Thanks to Chris and Jayne, ETCO had a warm feeding program for children at our new office—bringing joy, a good meal, and community together in Kibera.
Project Site Visit by Rotary Club of IPSWICH (USA) and Kikuyu (Kenya)
It was a great and engaging day of partnership and learning as we hosted the International Rotary Club of IPSWICH team, led by Environmental Lawyer Chris and his wife, Jane, Former President of Rotary Club of Kikuyu Hon. George Ngotho and Rotarian Yumbya for a visit to our project implementation sites. The visit provided an opportunity to review the project areas on the ground, discuss implementation priorities, and strengthen our shared commitment to sustainable environmental and community development. We also had the opportunity to visit the Nairobi Rivers Commission (NRC), where we were hosted by Commissioner Dr. Loice Kipkorir, a member of the Ngong River Committee. We explored opportunities to strengthen collaboration and align our work with the Nairobi Rivers Commission's Restoration Framework.
Community Capacity Building Training
We are currently participating in the ongoing PROVE (Public Space Governance Research, Observation, Validation and Experimentation) Pilot Programme, a four-month initiative by Public Space Networks (PSN) bringing together 11 community groups from Kamukunji and Korogocho. The programme focuses on strengthening community organizations’ capacity to manage, protect and improve public spaces as well as restoring rivers and it's ecosystems. The ongoing capacity-building training is helping CBOs and community organizations better understand the connection between public spaces, river restoration and ecosystem conservation, while exploring practical approaches and stronger collaboration among communities, government agencies, development partners and other stakeholders.