Dusi Canoe Marathon sponsors driving river clean-up programmes

The MyLife Dusi Canoe Marathon’s title sponsor has driven a rolling programme of clean-up initiatives in the Dusi River catchment coupled with key educational programmes.

This comes as the spotlight of the world’s canoeing community shifts to the famous river race conducted between Pietermaritzburg and Durban on the Msunduzi.

Dusi sponsors driving river clean-up

After taking over the title sponsorship of the Dusi Canoe Marathon in 2021, the staff and management at MyLife have joined forces with the Dusi Umgeni Conservation Trust and say they have been working since the beginning of November to clean up waste from the river.

“We as MyLife have been busy preparing for the MyLife Dusi and in doing so we see the MyLife Dusi Canoe Marathon as an powerful platform to bring awareness to the issues of litter and water quality in our local environment,” Truda Foods marketing’s Sloane Lang said. “When it comes to affordable nutrition, our rivers and sustainability as a whole — we are passionate and determined to make a positive impact.”

The importance of the river was highlighted in 2019 when the Willowton Group’s Sunfoil factory spilled a toxic mixture of cooking oil and caustic soda into the river devastating life along the Dusi.

Education is key

In addition to keeping the river clean, the MyLife staff have also taken the initiative to head into the Valley of a Thousand Hills to educate teachers and children about the importance of keeping rivers clean.

“The MyLife Dusi Canoe Marathon is a key event that lays a foundation for the river to be maintained all year round.

“The main aim of these workshops has been to educate the teachers and children about the importance of rivers and how we should look after them.

“The educational program includes content around the quality of the water, how one should not litter and affordable nutrition.

“A team of energetic MyLife Dusi athletes hosted entertaining workshops for students to participate in,” Lang added

These workshops that were set up by the MyLife team are going to be extended in the new year when the students return to school.

“They will also receive books, training materials, posters and comprehension cards in January 2022. These will help maintain the student’s learning momentum and help them to remember all that they have learned during the workshops.

“The MyLife team will also be conducting a Recycling to Resources workshop at each school in January 2022.

“This entails educating learners and teachers on how to transform everyday recyclable items into valuable learning resources and tools, which is a fantastic way to incorporate functionality into student arts and crafts.”