Troop troopers Eindhoven
Troop Troopers Eindhoven is a neighbourhood initiative which works against litter in an inclusive and accessible way. Their volunteers go into Eindhoven's neighbourhoods every month to tackle the litter problem in our city.
In 2020, a local resident from Muschberg Geestenberg (old Tongelre) posted a call on Nextdoor; "Does anyone feel like picking up litter in our neighbourhood on World Cleanup Day?" After a few responses, three local residents went out and collected 10 bags of rubbish in two hours. They saw that once a year would not be nearly enough, and Troop Troopers Eindhoven was born. Troop Troopers Eindhoven is now active in 13 neighbourhoods, all of which can be found a handy overview map.
Picking up litter not only makes the neighbourhood cleaner and more beautiful, but above all safer. The Troop Troopers come across not only plastic bags, bottles and wrappers, but also bottles of alcohol, broken glass, drugs and needles on a regular basis.
What makes Troop Troopers Eindhoven unique is that apart from cleaning up litter, they are also a very inclusive organisation. All neighbourhoods are self-managing and communicate using whatsapp groups when they are going to clean up their neighbourhood. Is an hour too long, do you want join them just once or are you just busy? No problem, anything you can do is great. Don't have your own ergonomic litter grabber, hand-hoop or safety vest? No problem either, co-founder Gina will gladly lend them to you. Every person from Eindhoven is welcome, regardless of age, origin, religion or how mobile you are.
Did you know, for instance, that it is a myth that your benefits are cut when you volunteer? You can just do this for a few hours a month without any consequences. Just inform your 'contact person on benefits' at Eindhoven municipality. For many volunteers, troop trooping is a way to maintain social contacts and a form of meaningfulness.
In ten years' time, Troop Troopers Eindhoven would like to see a group actively picking up litter in every neighbourhood in Eindhoven. And that every group can be found on the Troop Troopers Eindhoven staff map. Of course, these do not all have to be Troop Troopers groups; Gina likes to put other groups, initiatives and organisations literally and figuratively on the map. After all, she is not interested in the name, but in a clean and safe Eindhoven and the social impact that Troop Troopers Eindhoven has. Do you also collect litter and would you like to be on the Troop Troopers Eindhoven map? Then get in touch.
Do you like connecting people, posting fun messages on social media or helping to coordinate Troop Troopers Eindhoven? Gina is still looking for help! Let us know what you can contribute and send an email to info@troeptroopers.nl.
More information about Troop Troopers Eindhoven? Then check out the website. They are looking for volunteers, especially expats. Gina finds it hard to reach you guys, so please do send a message!
Photo: Troop Troopers Eindhoven