Fed up with the state of their Parisian suburb, members of a youth charity decided to clean up – and challenge another city, sparking a trend

When Hind Ayadi decided to do something about the amount of rubbish in her neighbourhood, kickstarting a national cleaning campaign was not her intention. But “Ma cité va briller” (“My suburb is going to shine”) has become just that: a viral initiative that spread throughout France, to Algeria and beyond in just a few days.

Ayadi, founder of youth arts nonprofit Espoir et Création, lives in Garges-lès-Gonesse, part of the northern suburbs of Paris and previously famous only for gang violence. But at the end of July, Ayadi and other members of Espoir et Création decided to work with local young people to raise awareness of environmental issues and the importance of protecting natural resources – as well as encouraging them to feel proud of their town.

Hind managed to inspire around 40 residents between the ages of eight and 25 to volunteer to pick up litter and trash all over the city for almost a week. “Teenagers don’t always feel preoccupied by environmental issues but this time, they wanted to get involved,” Hind explains.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A cleanup in progress in Sartrouville, a neighbouring suburb to Garges-lès-Gonesse. Photograph: Geoffroy van der Hasselt/AFP/Getty Images

Impressed with how much of a difference they saw around them and keen to see it go further, the volunteers decided to use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to challenge the southern French city of Marseille to make a similar effort. Teamed with pictures of their work, the hashtags they used, #cleanchallenge and #marseille, immediately went viral. And to their amazement, Marseille accepted the challenge.

“When I found out about the challenge and our nomination, it was obvious that we had to take over,” says Ismaël Cousin, president of Marseille education nonprofit, Action Bomaye. Cousin recruited a group of 20 local families who cleaned up the streets of Marseille – before challenging Montpellier.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The viral challenge has changed public perception of Garges-lès-Gonesse. Photograph: Espoir et Création

Since then, the word has just kept spreading. Residents throughout the country have been inspired to get cleaning – whether their city has been directly challenged or not. Nice, Poissy, Perpignan and Mantes-la-Jolie embraced the trend last week along with 25 other cities; while others including Argenteuil, Stains and Arras are poised to join the list.

But while there is certainly less litter around, in Garges-lès-Gonesse, crucially, not only did challenge participants make sure their city was clean, they also improved its image.

Before the challenge, Garges-lès-Gonesse had a bad reputation; local and national media coverage tended to be limited to reports of violence. In fact, on July 21, just a week before the cleanup, a 29-year-old man was severely wounded after being shot three times in the middle of the street. Known for its long-standing neighbourhood gang rivalries and violence, Garges-lès-Gonesse is relishing its new role as the linchpin of a national initiative. “Conflicts are rife, the younger ones like to challenge one another on Facebook or Snapchat,” Hind points out. “That’s why I wanted to encourage them to join a cause that would still imply the challenging part but with a positive impact on their neighbourhoods. It brought them all together, even those who were part of rival groups.”

The project has become symbolic for the residents, refocusing attention and casting a positive light on their city. Now, instead of shaking their heads at another report of bloodshed, people are congratulating and even emulating them.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Even cities that haven’t been directly challenged are getting involved. Photograph: Geoffroy van der Hasselt/AFP/Getty Images

Thanks to the power of social media, cleanup challenges have become increasingly popular. The Instagram-friendly #trashtag movement is another online challenge that gained global prominence earlier this year, encouraging people to choose a spot to improve and to share striking before-and-after pictures of their handiwork.

Similarly, Ma cité va briller is proving to have global appeal. Following its success in France, residents of Aïn Benian and Ghazaouet, both in Algeria, decided to roll up their sleeves last Friday – and have subsequently challenged cities in Morocco and Tunisia to do the same.

Back in Garges-lès-Gonesse, proud volunteer Adil Nazir, 16, marvels at the scale of the response: “It’s rewarding to see that we’ve reached so many people,” he says. “Now, we’re fully committed to keeping our city clean.”

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