Cleaning 9.000 tons of trash

 

Over three years ago, Versova beach in Mumbai was little more than a dumping ground for garbage and waste. After witnessing the devastating impact the refuse was having on the ocean, Afroz Shah decided to take matters into his own hands. What started off as a single man’s mission to clean up his favorite childhood beach turned into the world’s largest beach cleanup initiative. As of today, Shah and hundreds of volunteers have cleaned up over nine million kilograms of plastic and waste, with hopes to expand their initiative to other beaches in the future.

Vocabulary chunks to learn from video :

• A  landfill
• A little over 3 years ago
• A movement started and led by one man
• I am a lawyer by profession
• A dumping ground
• My personal journey
• To join in
• Hundreds of volunteers
• The biggest preventative action
• It’ about the mindset of people
• Local communities
• How to segregate it
• I’m connecting with nature
• It has to be spick and span (very clean and tidy)
• We are in for a long haul (difficult effort or task)

The beach after the cleanup project

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I am a dabbawala

[great big story]

With a population of over 18 million people, Mumbai is one of the world’s largest megalopolises. To put it mildly, the city can be unpredictable. But amid the chaos, Mumbai has one thing that is nearly 100 percent reliable: your lunch delivery. The dabbawalas of Mumbai are an institution. Dabbawalas deliver homemade lunches to workers across Mumbai—nearly 200,000 of them per day. Crisscrossing side streets on bikes, balancing trays that weight almost 150 pounds on their heads, this group of 5,000 men helps define the city. But it’s not just the staggering quantity or exhaustive work that sets these guys apart; their 99.9% delivery accuracy and incredible efficiency is the envy of delivery services the world over.

Vocabulary chunks to learn after watching the video :

• Mumbai has over 18 million people
• Amidst this chaos
• Your lunch delivery
• Homemade lunches
• This is how the system works
• He picks up your lunch
• They are sorted and delivered out into the city
• Lunch box
• They are delivering you a meal straight from your kitchen
• The most efficient logistics system in the world
• Per million transactions
• Less than 4 mistakes are made
• Side streets
• Balancing trays
• They help define the city
• 6 Days a week, monsoon or shine
• The train might be late
• You power may go out
• Your lunch will be on time