DAR ES SALAAM, June 5 -- AS the world marks World Environment Day 2025 today under the theme “Ending Plastic Pollution,” led by the Republic of Korea, it is high time we (Tanzanians) cut the fluff and got our hands literally dirty.

We must forget the grand speeches and glossy reports.

What we need is real action from the ground up. That means rolling up sleeves for genuine activities like tree planting, clean-up drives and community education on waste management.

Yes, it sounds old-school. But ask anyone who has hauled a bag of trash out of a river or planted a seedling where a forest once stood, purely it works! In Tanzania, the environment is not just about clean air or picturesque landscapes.

It is about survival, livel...