What is Plogging? Spoiler: It Helps Keep Our Planet Clean
Join Origin and Outdoor Prolink in celebrating Earth Day! This year we are teaming up with Origin to give away two national parks passes to reward acts of plogging. Head to Outdoor Prolink’s Instagram to read all of the rules on how to enter! Not sure what plogging is? You came to the right place!
What Is Plogging?
Plogging is a creative (and active) way to pick up trash that started trending in Sweden in 2016 and is now a global activity. Plogging combines jogging and picking up litter and is derived from the Swedish verbs “plocka up” (pick up) and “jogga” (jog).
When you plog, you quickly pick up trash while jogging. Though, it doesn’t really matter how you pick up trash, just that you do your part along the way.
Why Plog?
Every year, we produce over 300 million tons of plastic, and 91% of that isn’t recycled. Plogging is a simple way to help reduce the environmental impact of plastic waste. We are firm believers in Leave No Trace principles. We love to enjoy the great outdoors, respect our earth, and keep it as clean as possible!
There’s nothing worse than getting to a trailhead or campsite to find it covered in trash. We want to encourage all of the outdoor enthusiasts out there to keep our earth clean and contribute by picking up trash when they’re recreating!
How To Plog
How? Easy! Whenever you’re out on a hike, run, bike ride, ski, kayak, or stroll through the neighborhood and you see trash, pick it up, and throw it away! It’s as easy as that!
Most ploggers bring a trash bag and gloves when they go out on their adventure. Your hands (and pockets) stay clean and it makes it a little easier to carry litter.
Stick to your usual route or trail, or mix it up and plog somewhere new. It’ll change up how you recreate when you’re looking around corners, under bushes, and over logs for trash to collect.
Some Helpful Tips For Plogging:
- For the ultra clean: Bring along a pair of gloves and a ziplock bag to keep your hands clean and secure trash so it doesn’t have to touch your goods.
- For the semi clean: Bring along a plastic bag to put the trash you find in!
- For the dirtbags: When you find a piece of trash, put it in a pocket in your backpack to throw away for later. Pro tip: Keep all the trash in one pocket for easy disposal.
- When you finish plogging, consider separating the collected trash into recyclable and non-recyclable piles and get rid of them accordingly.
What Are Some Examples Of Trash You Might See Along The Way?
- Food wrappers
- Receipts
- Cigarette butts
- Bottle caps
- Water bottles
- Discarded gear
- Discarded clothing
- Plastic
- Doggy bags (if you’re feeling brave pick these up on your way out!)
Help Spread The Word
Don’t keep plogging a secret! Tell your friends, family, co-workers, and people you meet on your adventures about plogging. Post your trash adventures on social media and use #plogging in your caption.
Let your followers catch a glimpse of you with a trash bag and gloves while you’re out recreating. When they ask, “what’s plogging?” you can tell them it’s an awesome way to keep the outdoors clean while exploring.
Remember, plogging doesn’t have rules. You can do it whenever, wherever, and however you want. Whatever you choose to do makes a difference. And the more people you tell, the more trash that’s collected.
About the Gear Tester
Kelly Knauf leads the marketing team at Outdoor Prolink. She is a mountain lover, outdoor enthusiast, and professional snack packer. By day she answers emails and writes content, by night she's plotting her next camping trip or snowboarding adventure.
