It's usually celebrated with cake, friends and a party.
For Hazmi Nabil Mahmad Faisaal, however, he decided to celebrate his 18th birthday differently.
Instead of the usual fuss, Hazmi made a pledge to pick up rubbish for an hour a day for 23 days.
23/5/02 day aku dilahirkan. So aku nak celeb bday aku tapi tak boleh buat party ?.Instead aku try cabar diri aku untuk kutip sampah area Klang Valley selama 23 hari. It may be a small work, and I only managed to fill 3 plastic bags today. Doakan aku berjaya rakan-rakan?#day1 pic.twitter.com/CuI8lLcB1n
— Hazmi Nabil (@hazmi_nabil_) May 23, 2020
A love for the environment
"Honestly, I've been picking up trash for years now. It's my way of giving back to society and showing my love for the environment.""The difference is that this year I decided to make a pledge and post it on social media," he said when speaking to Rojak Daily.
Hazmi has been posting diligently about his garbage collection efforts from his neighbourhood in Bangi since his birthday on 23 May.
"It's been surprisingly fun. People are starting to recognise me, and I get the random uncle or aunty saying hi and sometimes hoots and the thumb-up from passing cars," he said.
On top of posting pictures from his daily sessions, Hazmi also updates followers on the kinds of rubbish he collected for the day.
Day 3/23
— Hazmi Nabil (@hazmi_nabil_) May 26, 2020
Harini agak sibuk dan ingatkan harini tak banyak sangat kutipan sebab sampai lokasipun lambat dalam pukul 6.15 petang tapi alhamdullilah harini banyak pulak kutipan. Tak sampai 1 jam dua plastik sudah penuh. Sampah harini banyak putung rokok dan kotak rokok. pic.twitter.com/pd8md7vp4S
Litter, litter, everywhere
"Sometimes people don't even realise that they're littering. For example, on one of the days, I found a lot of firework remnants around the field area.""It was just all over the place," he said.
Other surprising finds include 3 handphones disposed of in one area.
"Some online friends have said that they could probably be burner phones, but I don't know. I tried switching them on. They don't work," he said.
Day 4/23
— Hazmi Nabil (@hazmi_nabil_) May 27, 2020
Still busy but I still manage to fill one bag only. But it’s alright tomorrow i promise lagi banyak drpd harini. Anyway harini jumpa 3 telefon hahahaha. pic.twitter.com/mMwry50bVz
Youths unite
Hazmi, who is originally from Langkawi, said that he hoped his efforts would inspire other youth to do the same."I hope to one day start a nationwide rubbish collection initiative involving the youth. We could set aside one day a month and just collect rubbish together," he said.
As for those who are planning to follow in Hazmi's footsteps, he's got a little advise for you.
"Make sure you wear gloves. If it's layered, that would be better. Bring a spray type sanitiser and immidiately sanitise once you're done. Lastly, always remain humble," he said.
Wise words from this environmentally conscious teen.
Great effort Hazmi!
