Aberdonian has turned trash into cash and won our £250 LitterLotto prize

The partnership, launched in November 2022, encourages more people to bin their litter and offers weekly prizes ranging from £50 to £500.

Mike believes the initiative is a great way to help keep Scotland beautiful.

The 32-year-old has been a litter picker for many years. Speaking on our partnership with LitterLotto, he said: “It has definitely given me a deeper view towards the litter I’ve been collecting with having to take a picture.

“I think like most areas you will always find litter somewhere, but in regards to the city itself and nearby towns, this initiative is something I feel will be a huge success in encouraging people to get involved with litter picking whilst acting as a natural deterrent towards people littering in the first place.”

Mike runs a litter picking group called Community cleanUP, which was created in 2019 on the back of a personal mental health challenge. The Community clean UP is now one of the charity’s Community Clean Up Hubs and detail can be found of the hub, and other nearby hubs, on the Clean Up Scotland map.

He said: “Since then I have been using litter picking to help myself and others. The group spent months cleaning up a riverside in Aberdeen removing over 13,000kg of litter and transforming an area used as a dumping ground for centuries into a relaxing area and nature trail for the local community and those around the city. The group also removed over 2,500kg of metal from the river which has brought otters to swim upstream for the first time in 40 years.”

Mike has managed to get family members and friends involved, as well as volunteers who work with Community cleanUP and he will be putting his LitterLotto winnings to good use, saying: “With the money, I am hoping to buy new Community cleanUP high vis vests to give out during arranged litter picking events to ensure those involved are easily visible.”

Catherine Gee, our Deputy Chief Executive, said: “I’m delighted to see that Mike has been rewarded for doing the right thing through our partnership with LitterLotto.

“This collaboration is all about encouraging people to help tackle the country’s litter emergency and it’s brilliant to see people across the country getting involved.

“I’m looking forward to seeing many more Scottish winners benefitting from helping to keep Scotland beautiful.”

Carly Di Crescienzo, Local Authority Campaigns Manager at LitterLotto, said: “It's great to see our Scottish users benefiting from this regional jackpot. 

“We hope that our partnership with Keep Scotland Beautiful will encourage others to get involved.

“Our users help keep their communities clean and green and with LitterLotto you can win cash while doing good.”

The LitterLotto app is available to download for free on the App Store and Android Store.

This innovative venture is one of the many ways Keep Scotland Beautiful is tackling the litter emergency. A recent national poll conducted by the environmental charity found that two thirds of people believe that litter is an issue in their local area, and 87% that it is an issue across Scotland

Visit the LitterLotto website for more information.