Arifur Rahman, from Barguna Sadar upazila in southern Bangladesh, spent years travelling the country with a camera as a photojournalist. Now past forty, he later left the profession for a life close to nature: picking up plastic and litter on beaches and persuading people to look after the environment. Jagonews24 told his story on 18 March 2026.
Early in his career he worked for Prothom Alo and The Daily Star, among other national and international media. Those working trips brought him to a realisation: nature's beauty is boundless, yet human neglect was quickly destroying it.
From journalism to nature
Giving up a long career was not easy. "Journalism gave me a lot and let me see many parts of the country," he told Jagonews24. "But at some point I felt I was only watching and taking pictures, while doing nothing for nature. Then I felt I needed to be close to nature."
Since then he has described himself as a "traveller". His route is not fixed: sometimes a remote village, sometimes a quiet stretch of beach. Along the way he notes where nature is being harmed and talks to local people, including children and teenagers, about protecting it. "Nature gives me contentment. If I can do a little in return, that is my joy," he said.
His home district, Barguna, is a coastal district of Barisal Division bounded on the south by the Bay of Bengal. It covers 1,939.39 square kilometres and had a population of 1,010,531 in the 2022 census.
A bag in hand on Kuakata beach
Beaches are his favourite places, but the heaps of plastic and other rubbish on them pain him. So when he walks on the sand he carries a bag and collects plastic, food packets and other litter. He is often seen doing this at Kuakata beach. "I don't want to blame anyone. But if we ourselves throw rubbish anywhere, how will nature stay beautiful?" he said.
Kuakata is a tourist town in Kalapara upazila of Patuakhali district. Its beach runs for about 18 kilometres and offers views of both sunrise and sunset over the Bay of Bengal.
The beach's plastic problem was not new. The Daily Star reported on 5 June 2023 that a 2022 survey by Blue-Gard, a youth volunteer group, found about 23 kg (22.77 kg) of non-biodegradable waste building up on Kuakata beach every day. The same report said that in 2019, after a petition by groups including the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association, the High Court banned single-use plastic products in hotels, restaurants and coastal areas nationwide, though enforcing the ban remained a challenge.
Small acts, a wider message
Besides collecting rubbish, he talks to tourists, local shopkeepers and fishermen, and has asked many of them to keep proper bins beside the beach. "Saving nature doesn't always need a big movement. Small actions can bring big change too. If everyone throws their own rubbish in the right place, many problems will shrink," he said. According to Jagonews24, some tourists followed his example and began picking up litter themselves.
Such efforts matter as plastic use grows. The World Bank said in December 2021 that annual per capita plastic consumption in Bangladesh's urban areas had tripled to 9.0 kg in 2020 from 3.0 kg in 2005, and that a large part of the plastic waste is dumped in water bodies and rivers.
His life is far simpler than in his photojournalism days, and he has no regrets. "Before, I might have photographed big news. Now I do small things. But the satisfaction I get now is different," he said. He believes protecting nature is the duty of ordinary people, not only the government. Suman Shikder, founder of the coastal volunteer organisation Social Development Worker Forum, called his journey unusual and inspiring.
Photo: Salahuddin66 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Sources: Jagonews24, The Daily Star, World Bank, Wikipedia
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