The Plastico Precioso Uramba charity is spearheading a major clean-up in Bahia Malaga, where it has collected about 16 tons of garbage since 2019
View of a school kit valued at 150 plastic caps in Ladrilleros, in Bahia Malaga, near Buenaventura, department of Valle del Cauca, Colombia
Image: Joaquin Sarmiento / AFP©
On a beach in Colombia, children trade plastic waste for pseudo coins which they can use to "buy" clothes, books, school supplies or even popcorn.
Bahia Malaga National Park, on Colombia's Pacific coast, is one of the best places in the South American country to spot humpback whales.
The giant mammals draw tourists, a welcome source of revenue, but the visitors leave a heavy plastic footprint, in the form of tons of waste.
Pollution will be one of key topics on the agenda at the upcoming UN COP16 biodiversity conference in the Colombian city of Cali starting October 21.
Every year, about eight million tons of plastic end up in the ocean, according to the UN.