Billingshurst teen takes on 100 miles of litter picking

A 19-year-old has managed to collect litter across 100 miles of the South Downs to raise money for an international charity.
Louisa Robertson-Macleod South Downs litter picker SUS-151106-121728001Louisa Robertson-Macleod South Downs litter picker SUS-151106-121728001
Louisa Robertson-Macleod South Downs litter picker SUS-151106-121728001

Louisa Robertson-Macleod, of Billingshurst, set out to raise £2,500 for Raleigh International, a sustainable development charity that helps poor rural communities abroad.

However, an ambitious 100 mile trek across the South Downs was not enough; Lousia decided to grab a litter picker and clean up the scenic national park simultaneously.

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She said: “People who do long walks want to achieve something along the way.

“I used a litter hoop and bags. It felt really good cleaning the environment behind me and I got a lot of appreciation along the way.

Covering 12 to 16 miles a day, from May 29 to June 5, Louisa walked from Winchester to Eastbourne and collected 47 bin bags of rubbish.

En route she passed Bignor Hill, River Arun, Amberley and Devil’s Dyke to name a few.

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South Downs National Park Authority helped Louisa on her way by providing the litter picker and bin bags.

Although surrounded by beautiful terrain, Louisa said the weather was unpredictable.

“There was one day where I was caught in something like a tornado and another day it was blisteringly hot,” she said.

Having raised £1,500, the former Bedales School pupil, will now donate £1,000 of her own money to make up the difference.

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She will be joining Raleigh to do conservation and community projects in Nicaragua and Costa Rica at the end of June.

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