Noma Yini

I'm pretty sure every boy in the world, if not most, at some point in their lives wanted to be a soccer player or at least played soccer with friends. I know my friends and I ran through many soccer balls to the point where we couldn’t get a new ball any more so sometimes we would make one on our own using plastics. 

But thats not the story we’re telling here, although soccer makes it more relatable universally. 

The story here is that we have people in South Africa who are often overlooked and discarded even when they spend their days cleaning up after our mess – literally. Trolley waste surfers move through the city doing work that is rarely acknowledged, yet absolutely necessary.



The most challenging thing about telling this story was understanding that these guys recycle not necessarily because they ‘care’ about the planet. They recycle because this is how they survive.

It’s work. It’s routine. It’s Noma Yini – whatever it takes, using whatever is available, to get through the day.

Looking at it now, I realise this isn’t so different from the plastic balls we made as kids. What we now call sustainability has always existed here. And instead of telling people to recycle, perhaps the better place to start is by shinning light to the people who already do.

I know I can never begin to relate or speak for them, but what I can do is speak to South Africa, speak to you. Show you that these people too – are human and that they deserve some Love in whatever form we can give. 

Because sometimes feeling seen, is the difference between being overlooked and believing you belong. 

Noma Yini.