How many cigarette butts can you pick up in just 15 minutes? ⏱️

That was the challenge thrown down by our host, Melanie from The Green Centre Brighton, when the GoodGym and Active Sussex crews teamed up at The Level this past Tuesday.

Even though it started pouring right at 1pm (classic British weather! 🌧️), everyone rolled up their sleeves for the Green Centre’s Green Spaces Programme. The mission? Show some love to our local park and clear out as much litter as possible.

In just a quarter of an hour, every single volunteer bagged between 75g and 100 g of cigarette butts, with Mac leading the charge! It might sound like a small dent, but it’s a massive win for Keep Britain Tidy's Cigarette Butts Are Rubbish Campaign. Believe it or not, cigarette butts are the UK's biggest litter problem, with an estimated 2.4 million of them dropped on England's high streets at any given moment, despite a decreasing number of adults who smoke regularly.

This hands-on GoodGym community mission was the perfect way for both groups to put their eco-goals into action! GoodGym aims to make a positive environmental impact by combining exercise with conservation tasks that increase biodiversity and green spaces. Similarly, among their core actions since signing their Environmental Sustainability Commitment, Active Sussex are embedding eco-friendly practices into daily operations, engaging local sports networks, and advocating for better access to quality blue and green spaces.

Taking part in this park clearance was the perfect opportunity to "walk the talk." By maintaining and improving the city's green spaces, we help ensure these vital areas remain clean, safe, and welcoming places for everyone to get outdoors and stay active. 🌿🏃‍♂️

Active Sussex, you are welcome to join us again anytime!

Nine GoodGymers headed up to Whitehawk: four cyclists, three runners, and two walkers, taking on some of Brighton's most beastly hills to reach the Whitehawk Community Food Project. Thie project is a community allotment focussed on growing organic fruit, vegetables, and herbs, while giving people the opportunity to learn practical food-growing and land skills, and spend time connecting with nature.

We were there to help create some new no-dig beds for planting broad beans and garlic, as well as clearing the surrounding pathways to make them more accessible. The no-dig gardening method avoids breaking up, lifting, or turning over the soil. Instead, beds are prepared by layering organic matter, like garden compost, directly onto the ground before planting into it.

We got to work shifting and spreading alternate layers of woodchip (which smelt amazing) and manure (which did not smell amazing), gradually transforming the beds. Our hosts, Kerry, Poppy, and Ben, looked after us brilliantly, keeping everyone busy and making sure we knew what we were doing. And it seems our efforts were appreciated. They said:

*"Thanks so much for the GoodGym session at WCFP last night. It was great to meet you all. Your bright energy and hard work was very much appreciated. It really made a difference for us."

We were also rewarded with a beautiful Brighton sunset, and kindly treated to something sweet: matcha KitKats from Sarah, who's swiftly approaching her 50th GoodGym task! A wonderful welcome to Irene and Phil attending for the first time!

Beastly hills, manure, sunsets, and KitKats. Just another GoodGym evening.

What next? HERE's our scheduled GoodGym sessions across Brighton & Hove.