A youth-led sustainability organisation, SustyVibes, has mobilised hundreds of young Nigerians across 10 states to tackle the growing challenge of textile waste pollution as part of the 2025 edition of its annual Street Conference.
The initiative, held on World Cleanup Day in partnership with the UPS Foundation, was themed “Strive for Five.” The campaign promoted the idea that if just five per cent of a community unites for change, it can trigger a cultural shift in environmental behaviour and sustainable waste management practices.
This year’s conference focused on the escalating problem of textile waste, driven by the rise of fast fashion and inadequate disposal systems.
With landfills and open dumps across Nigeria increasingly clogged by non-biodegradable fabrics, experts have warned of worsening environmental hazards, including flooding in urban centres.
Projects and Partnerships Director at SustyVibes, Aniebiet Obot, explained that since 2016 the Street Conference has provided a platform for young people, communities, and government stakeholders to collaborate on environmental stewardship.
“In line with this year’s World Cleanup Day, SustyVibes, supported by the UPS Foundation and working with UPS Nigeria, challenged Nigerian households and businesses to rethink what is typically considered waste. Items like textile offcuts, plastics, and bottles can be transformed into valuable products such as jewellery, bags, or flowerpots, as showcased in our Do It Yourself (DIY) training sessions,” Obot said.
Across Lagos, Abuja, Adamawa, Kaduna, Kwara, Abia, Imo, Enugu, Rivers, and Ilorin, more than 570 volunteers, mostly young people, took part in a range of activities, including clean-up drives, upcycling demonstrations, and interactive “Intervibes” sessions designed to gather data and community perspectives on waste management.
The campaign also leveraged sustainable fashion initiatives to raise awareness about fabric waste, while practical training sessions equipped participants with skills to recycle and upcycle discarded materials. By the end of the programme, more than 2,724.8 kilogrammes of waste had been collected across the 10 states.
SustyVibes emphasised that its goal is to empower at least five per cent of citizens to become environmental leaders, believing that a small but committed group can inspire the remaining 95 per cent of their communities to adopt recycling, upcycling, and other sustainable habits.
