Team Matooke adds environment protection bit to their monthly run

The effects of climate change in the country and the world at large cannot be underrated, the reason many are devising ways to curb it.

It is for that reason that a group of enthusiastic runners dubbed ‘Team Matooke’ incorporated an element of Corporate Social Responsibility that involved planting trees at the Entebbe Botanical Gardens in their monthly Kampala-Entebbe run that was held on Sunday.

About 120 runners participated in the monthly 28km run and planted 100 trees in the gardens which they could maintain in other runs according to the president of the group Martin Makumbi.

They set off at the Quality Super Market in Lubowa starting at 6.30 am, at different intervals to make the 28km journey to the Entebbe Cricket Oval, while others challenged themselves with add-ons up to the airport (36km) and before finishing with a lap around the Entebbe Cricket Oval.

“The Katonda Afaayo Foundation this time donated trees and we got permission from the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) and also got authority from the Entebbe Botanical Gardens and planted over 100 trees on our way to the finishing point,” Makumbi said.

“It can only get bigger, and going forward the tree-planting campaign is something that we want to adopt and make it annual. We are going to encourage partnerships to support our environment.

“This time we incorporated a CSR activity (a tree-planting campaign) because we use plastic while we are running, and we encourage ourselves to carry these empty bottles to the next water point so that we don’t litter to protect the environment,” he stated.

He said their activities started about five years ago and that their group converges most of the running clubs in Kampala. The run is held every second Sunday of the month.

“We adopted the name ‘Team Matooke’ to identify ourselves as a team that comes from Uganda because it is that brand that we carry when we go to attend international runs. We have attended the Standard Chartered and Kiri Marathons.

“We have also individuals that have gone to the Berlin, New York Marathons and London Marathons under the brand ‘Team Matooke’, “Makumbi noted.

He said that the Entebbe run encourages runners to push themselves beyond their limits as they try to attempt the full marathon (42 km).

“By attempting the Kampala-Entebbe run you go out of your comfort zone and through that way you sort of prepare to attempt a full marathon. But it does not stop anyone to join us on any particular Sunday for a run,” Makumbi stated.

On any particular run, each of the participants pays sh20,000, however, there is a membership that requires one to participate in at least 10 runs over two years before they can pay an annual subscription fee of sh100,000/- for those that wish to join the team.

Joyce Adokorach from NARO praised the team for caring for the environment while one of the runners, Charles Mugambe encouraged others to join the runners to tap into the health benefits that come with physical activity.

“The matooke team has planted at least 40 indigenous tree species out of the many they have planted. This is an important cause in terms of the conservation of our indigenous tree species and we want to appreciate them for the noble initiative that they have done by planting indigenous tree species in the Botanical garden,” Adokorach said.

“Running disciplines you, it helps you in personal health management and ensures that you rest well.

 “We do train in the middle of the week for 5-6 days, every week. But this run prepares us to do even longer distances of up to 36kms up to the Airport.

“It takes someone with a strong mind to run such a long distance but it helps because when you start, you won’t stop because after you’ll be more productive, you’ll be more healthy and you’ll enjoy life; and it is not costly, you only need a running kit, shoes and maybe a watch; I just wish many more other people could join us as we continue promoting healthy lifestyles,” Mugambe stated.

“It was a good route, always challenging but I’m part of a running club ‘Gatsy’ and we run from Naalya for over 30 km every Saturday,” Lona Piloya, one of the female runners said.