Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on March 2011

Roger Francis Clarke/Fujisawa Beach Cleaning Project

What better way to spend Earth Day than heading down to the Enoshima coast and taking part in the beach cleanup being organized by local French language and cooking school Soleil Provence. At the last of these, in October, volunteers collected a whopping 138kg of trash, from glass shards to cigarette butts and everything in between, so it probably goes without saying that you’ll want to bring a sturdy pair of gloves. And after all the hard work is done, you and your fellow volunteers can get to know each other better in the traditional French way: with lots of good food and wine.

Apr 17, 10:30am, free. Kugenuma Beach, Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture. Nearest stn: Kugenuma-Kaigan (Odakyu Enoshima line). Email info@soleilprovence.com to register or see www.soleilprovence.com for more information.