PositiviTea - Save the Beach

The origin of ‘Save the Beach’ (STB) is a rather dramatic story. What would become one of the most prominent Environment NGOs in the Maldives began as a movement in the island of Villimale, Kaafu Atoll, circa 2007 when a group of young surfers finally decided to do something about the island’s littering problem.

One of those surfers was Hassan Ahmed, who is mostly known by the fond nickname of ‘Beybe’ (brother), the current president of STB. Reminiscing the old days, he recalled how the surfers had collected over three tonnes of garbage from Villimale’s beach and lagoon when they started out. It was a practice they kept up “because that was our home; the beach, the ocean”.