Empact Group volunteers removed 520 kilograms of waste from Durban’s Umgeni River while supporting food security and community projects during Mandela Day initiatives.
Empact Group employees and its catering division, Feedem, combined environmental conservation, food security and community support during a series of Mandela Day initiatives across Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape.
One of the campaign’s largest environmental achievements saw volunteers partner with the Litterboom Project to remove 160 bags of waste, weighing a combined 520 kilograms, from the Umgeni River and Beachwood Mangroves in Durban.
Across the country, employees also packed food parcels, planted vegetable gardens and donated clothing, toys and essential supplies to organisations supporting vulnerable children and communities.
At Empact Group’s head office, employees prepared and packed non-perishable food and essential items for No More Victims in Eldorado Park and Wings of Inspiration in Krugersdorp. Gardening tools and vegetable seedlings were also distributed to support sustainable food production at the organisations.
In Gauteng, volunteers established vegetable gardens at the children’s homes, while in Cape Town, teams visited Alta Du Toit, a residential care facility for people with intellectual disabilities, where they planted gardens to strengthen the facility’s food supply and spent time with residents.
The KwaZulu-Natal clean-up focused on protecting one of Durban’s sensitive coastal ecosystems, where litter carried through rivers and stormwater systems threatens wildlife, waterways and surrounding habitats.
“Mandela Day gives businesses an opportunity to examine the value their contribution creates,” said Salwa Albertyn, Group Human Resources Executive at Empact Group.
“We wanted our employees’ time and effort to result in something practical, whether that was food reaching a child, vegetables growing in a garden or waste being removed from a sensitive natural environment.”
Albertyn said meaningful corporate volunteering should respond to genuine community needs rather than simply becoming an annual activity.
“The purpose was to support the organisations and environments involved in a useful way, rather than simply complete an annual activity.”
By combining immediate relief with projects designed to deliver lasting value, Empact Group’s Mandela Day programme sought to leave a legacy extending well beyond 18 July, creating benefits for communities, vulnerable families and the natural environment alike.
