Joburg residents are rolling up their sleeves to do good while earning tickets for the Global Citizen Festival.
The City of Joburg in partnership with Global Citizen hosted a Clean-Up Day yesterday to improve the environment in Soweto and other regions of the city.
It takes place every third Saturday of the month.
Clearing rubbish and signing petitions are some of the good deeds citizens can do to stand a chance to attend the festival at FNB Stadium on December 2.
Joburg mayor Herman Mashaba said the monthly city-wide campaign raised awareness about littering, illegal dumping, overloading of bins, and the dilapidation of open spaces.
“There is a lot of filthiness and our people are not concerned about the environment. The Global Citizen has identified Joburg to be the first city to be involved with this global initiative.
“We really want to get environmental awareness out there,” said Mashaba, adding that Joburg residents should say, “what can I do for my city?” Not, “what can my city do for me?”
The chief executive and founder of Global Citizen, Hugh Evans, said the initiative was a global movement with millions of members taking action to end extreme poverty by 2030.
“We’re inspired by what Tata Madiba said in one of his final speeches: ‘overcoming poverty is not the gesture of charity. It’s an act of justice. Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural, it’s man-made and can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.’
“We are hugely excited to bring the festival to Johannesburg, headlined by Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Sho Madjozi, Wizkid and Cassper Nyovest, hosted by Oprah Winfrey and Trevor Noah.
“More than 35 world leaders are flying in for it,” Evans said.
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