A New #Trashtag Challenge Has Gone Viral, and It’s the Best Thing That’s Ever Happened to the World

This is the only virus the world needs: the already viral #Trashtag Challenge. We’ve all seen past trendy challenges like the Ice Bucket Challenge, but you won’t need to brace yourself for the cold while doing this one. On the contrary, it will make your soul and your surroundings healthier.

The team at Bright Side is happy to make you aware of the #Trashtag Challenge. It’s changing the world, are you up for it?

The challenge was originally a project started in 2015 by UCO Gear, an outdoor gear company based in Chicago. But it has been recently revived thanks to Facebook user Byron Román who made a post calling on “bored teenagers” to take the challenge.

Román dared them to clean an entirely littered outdoor space and upload before and after pictures of the area to social media using the hashtag #Trashtag. The response was massive and unexpected: As soon as the trend began, the internet did its job and the challenge went viral.

On Twitter alone the hashtag has reached more than 600,000 people and on Instagram, it’s been tagged in more than 25,000 posts. It’s even has gone multilingual and engaged Latin Americans are posting their pictures using the hashtag #basurachallenge, “basura” meaning trash in Spanish. Now that’s the kind of viral thing the world needs.

Some have declared it “the coolest challenge ever.” Others are starting to reach out to friends online and make plans to “#trashtag” certain spots. “I have a little bit more faith in humanity with this,” posted user cleanmovement on social media.

The challenge has already inspired hundreds of people around the globe. From India and Malaysia to Mexico and Brazil, people are contributing to making our environment cleaner. This proves that little by little, together we can make a big difference. So from our team at Bright Side, we want to say: Well done!

BONUS: Here’s the same idea done years ago in Hong Kong. It really does make a difference.

Want to join the challenge? Which spot would you commit to clean up? Tell us your ideas in the comments below!