Organizers of the event said that for every ton of paper that is used, 16 trees are torn down, and that the tournament was held to raise awareness about the need to recycle garbage and draw people's attention to existing sites in Jeddah where people can recycle their waste such as Hyper Panda and Mawakib Alajr in Al-Khaldiya.
The tournament was held in cooperation with Treewind, a company that recycles paper, plastics, cartons and wood, which are then reused for construction purposes. Treewind provided three bins and participants were able to experience throwing recyclable material in them. The company also provided participants with tetra-packed chocolate milk.
The tournament was also supported by the Olayan group, which distributed Kit Kats to all players and spectators. Dr. Nour Johargi addressed the opening speech by talking about the need to reduce, reuse and recycle waste.
Hanan Alnowaisir, founder of Mawakib Alajr recycling center, also addressed senior players about how not only would they be protecting the environment, but also saving lives due to the charity aspect of recycling and how the center's money goes to charities such as buying dialysis machines.
Protect the Environment Basketball Tournament is part of a chain of social awareness campaigns held to promote social messages through sports activities. Previous events include a Drink Milk Tournament, a Drink Water Tournament, an Anti-Smoking Tournament, and the Friends of Hawazin (Cancer Compassion) Tournament.
