Thought up by all the students! Yokohama City Nishi-ga-oka Elementary School hosts SPO-GOMI event to show gratitude to the community

The Nippon Foundation SPO-GOMI Federation (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Masanori Tamazawa; hereinafter "SPO-GOMI Federation"), which promotes the sport of competitive trash picking known as "SPO-GOMI," supported the "Everyone Clean SPO-GOMI Tournament" held on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. The event was organized by Class 2 of the 6th grade at Yokohama City Nishi-ga-oka Elementary School in Kanagawa Prefecture, evolving from their local trash-picking activities conducted during integrated studies.
This was the second time the event has been held, and the students were able to handle everything from planning to operation on their own, incorporating improvements based on reflections and insights from the previous event. By inviting local residents to join their teams, the students fostered interaction and made many discoveries through the unique perspective of elementary school children.

A SPO-GOMI tournament planned and operated by the whole class! Hosted by everyone at Yokohama City Nishi-ga-oka Elementary School

SPO-GOMI is a competition originating in Japan that combines traditional trash picking with sports elements, aiming to change attitudes toward environmental action by starting with "fun." The system, where teams compete for points based on the amount and type of trash collected within a time limit, allows anyone of any age to participate easily while serving as a catalyst for discovering local charm and environmental issues in daily life. It is spreading across the country among companies, local governments, and schools, and is gaining attention as a venue for environmental education.

For the generation that will lead the future, encountering SPO-GOMI provides an opportunity to engage with fundamental questions about how to relate to the environment—such as "Why shouldn't we litter?" and "What is the meaning of picking up trash in the community?"—at an early stage of their development. The experience of proactively engaging with the trash problem through the gateway of fun brings small changes to the students' daily actions and their perspective on the community, serving as a trigger for fostering environmental awareness.

Easy to participate and fun. Lots of trial and error led to the day's success

In Class 2 of the 6th grade at Nishi-ga-oka Elementary School, students have been working on local trash picking during their integrated studies. This "Everyone Clean SPO-GOMI Tournament" was held as an evolution of that learning, with the students taking charge of everything from planning to operation themselves. During the preparation process, they exchanged ideas to make the tournament easier to participate in and more enjoyable, and they organized the rules and division of roles themselves. The second tournament, which was held in this way, was a success that showcased the students' proactive efforts at every turn.