La course contre les déchets: Hyundai France and Healthy Seas Unite Students and Runners to Combat Marine Litter

On October 18, Hyundai Motor France and Healthy Seas joined forces to host La course contre les déchets (“Race Against Waste”) in Marseille, an initiative connecting the city’s famed Marseille-Cassis race with the issue of marine litter. This collaborative event united students, teachers, parents, local organisations fighting litter and even local influencers, showing how simple actions like running and cleanup can help protect our oceans.

As part of Hyundai’s Progress for Humanity vision, we collaborated with two schools—Canet Ambrosini and École Sainte Claire in Cassis – and involved a total of 138 students, accompanied by teachers and volunteer parents, in a series of interactive activities. The day began with an educational session, where children learned about the effects of marine litter on ocean life and discovered how they can make a positive impact on the environment. Through engaging presentations, hands-on demonstrations, and interactive discussions, students from 5 to 10 years old took an active role in exploring ways to prevent ocean pollution.

Inspired by our educational sessions, a group moved to the beach for a cleanup effort. With guidance from 1 Déchet Par Jour, a local organization dedicated to reducing litter, the students, parents, and teachers worked together to collect approximately 10 kilograms of small waste. Divided into color-coded bags, the litter included baby wipes, plastics, and cigarette butts. By engaging in this hands-on activity, the students could see firsthand the waste impacting their local beaches and felt the empowerment of contributing to a cleaner shoreline. Each participant received a certificate, and as a reminder of how waste can be transformed, 1 Déchet Par Jour brought some examples of recycled plastic toy tops for the children to play.

To amplify the reach of this event, Hyundai France invited three influencers—Julien Vin (@JULIEN.VINH), Marion (@SCARLETSOHANA), and Giovanni Cucchietti (@rungiov_marseill )—who covered the day’s activities and encouraged their followers to consider the environment in their daily routines. Hyundai will also be creating a video to share this impactful day, inspiring more people to join the movement against marine litter.

La course contre les déchets highlighted the power of combining daily routines with a purpose, encouraging everyone to make a difference. And you—have you ever considered using your daily exercise or run to pick up litter in nature?