Graphic Courtesy of Sofia Savid ‘24
By Helen Gloege ’23
Staff Writer
Lilly Platt is a 13-year-old England-born, Netherlands-based climate activist who centers her work around reducing plastic pollution through her initiative called Lilly’s Plastic Pickup. According to Global Citizen, in 2015, after Platt and her family moved to the Netherlands, she went on a walk with her grandfather and, in an attempt to improve her language skills, decided to count pieces of plastic. “We counted 91 pieces of plastic in only 10 to 15 minutes,” Platt told Global Citizen. Her grandfather explained to her that the plastic garbage then makes its way into the ocean to become “plastic soup,” according to an interview with Earth.org. This led to Platt starting Lilly’s Plastic Pickup, through which Platt goes on regular trash pickups, sorts the trash and “take[s] pictures of them and post[s] them on social media,” according to an interview with Global Citizen.
In addition to her plastic pickup, Platt also participates in her own version of Greta Thunberg’s “Fridays for Future” movement. She protests in front of the town hall in Zeist, in the Netherlands, for an hour every Friday with a sign that reads “School Strikes for Climate,” according to the HuffPost. Platt understands that picking up plastic isn’t the end, and, even though she is not old enough to vote, sees a solution in voting and political action, Global Citizen reported.
Platt’s work extends beyond the Netherlands, according to Climate Action Info. She held her own “Lilly’s Global Clean-up Day” that involved 27 countries and took place on April 18, 2018. Climate Action Info reported that Platt has also Skyped with classes in Canada, India, the U.K. and the United States about garbage pickups, reducing single-use plastic and plastic pollution.