Afroz Shah

Indian environmental lawyer leading the world's largest beach cleanup initiative

Afroz Shah is an Indian environmental lawyer whose #BeachCleanup project in Mumbai's Versova Beach became the world's largest sustained cleanup effort. Starting in 2015 with just 30 volunteers, the initiative grew to involve over 100,000 participants who removed 5,600 tons of plastic waste over three years. This effort not only restored the beach but also raised global awareness about marine pollution, earning Shah the UNEP Champions of the Earth Award in 2018.

Shah's work combines legal advocacy with grassroots action. He successfully petitioned India's Supreme Court to enforce stricter waste management laws and created a legal framework for plastic waste reduction. His collaboration with National Geographic's Plastic Wars campaign brought international attention to India's plastic crisis. The cleanup model he pioneered is now replicated in 20+ countries through his Versova Beach Volunteers network.

Key to his success has been community engagement strategies documented in environmental policy studies. Shah's TED Talk "How I cleaned up a beach and helped change a nation" (2019) explains his philosophy of "legal activism through collective action."