On the last weekend of June, the sky showed no sign of clearing up; the rain fell intermittently, heavy at times and light at others, while mist enveloped the mountains. Rather than opting for a comfortable indoor team-building session, the group of over twenty members from KSHOW donned raincoats, packed their bags, carried garbage bags, and set out for Jiufeng Mountain in Huangyan, Taizhou – not to conquer, but to "protect."
This was a long-awaited rain, and an unexpected baptism. In a nearly simple manner, we brought the first half of the year to a close while building momentum for the second half ahead.
A week before departure, weather forecasts predicted moderate to heavy rain on the day of the event. Some suggested rescheduling, while others proposed holding an indoor gathering instead. Ultimately, the team unanimously decided: no postponement, no compromise—entering the mountains as originally planned.
"Few people climb the mountain on rainy days, yet the trash in the mountains doesn't disappear just because of rain," said the colleague responsible for organizing the activity before we set off. "The route we chose is a popular weekend hiking trail among local residents. Plastic bottles, packaging bags, and paper towels are more easily washed into streams after rain, making cleanup significantly harder. Therefore, entering the mountain during rainy weather becomes even more essential." Thus, at 8 a.m. on Saturday, we gathered at the company entrance. Raincoats, hiking shoes, clip-on organizers, garbage bags, gloves—our equipment was complete. Without much ceremony, we checked each other's gear, confirmed all safety measures were in place, and then proceeded in several vehicles to the Ruiyan Temple trailhead at the foot of Jiufeng Mountain.
The rain was neither heavy nor light, just enough to dampen the brim of my hat. In the distance, the green mountains appeared pristine; nearby, a stream flowed gently. Thus began the "Mountain Purification Campaign."
The path up the mountain wasn't particularly difficult, but it became slippery after rain, with moss covering the stone steps—each step required careful footing. Groups of three or five travelers dispersed along the trail: those at the front were tasked with clearing the way, while those at the rear swept away every hidden piece of litter along the roadside.
Plastic bags are buried beneath fallen leaves, with only a corner visible; beverage bottles are lodged in rock crevices and must be carefully removed with tweezers; cigarette butts, candy wrappers, and food packaging bags are hidden in grass or between stone slabs, almost blending into the dead foliage. Hands that normally operate machine tools in workshops or draw blueprints at computers now hold long garbage tweezers, bend down, and meticulously lift each piece of fallen leaf to collect those casually discarded "white traces."
"Here it is!" "I've got it too; bring a big bag." "Don't step on that slope—let me slide."
There were no complaints or undue pressure. Everyone worked in perfect coordination: some cleared debris from the steep slopes, others assisted during descent, and a dedicated team handled waste sorting—recyclable materials were placed in one bag, non-recyclables in another. All waste was collected at the base-of-mountain recycling station for centralized processing upon returning down the mountain.
When we reached roughly halfway up the mountain, the rain suddenly intensified. The sound of raindrops filtered through gaps in the bamboo forest, and wind carrying mist hit us in the face. Everyone stood on a flat area by the roadside wearing raincoats, taking brief shelter from the rain. Some took out thermal cups from their bags and offered them to colleagues nearby for a sip of hot water; others shared extra raincoats with new colleagues who hadn't worn enough; some even laughed while competing to see who had more trash in their bags. No one grew impatient or complained about the weather—the rainy mountain provided us with a reason to slow down and allowed us to see our companions around us more clearly.
A rain-soaked mountain cleansing experience revealed our true selves to one another.
The usually quiet colleague walked silently at the back of the group, clearing up litter left behind by others; the always-joking colleague steadily supported a physically weaker partner across a slippery slope; and the colleague who primarily worked with computers used a band-aid he carried to treat a wound inflicted by a tree branch.
People who have been caught in the rain together are more likely to remember each other.
On the way down the mountain, there was a particularly slippery section of long dirt slope. Everyone spontaneously formed a line, maintaining distance from one another and reminding each other to "be careful underfoot." Some first secured their footing at the bottom of the slope and reached out to assist those behind; others used trekking poles to probe ahead, signaling everyone to follow once they confirmed safety. No one urged others forward, nor did anyone rush ahead recklessly—this is how climbing mountains works, and it's equally true in work.
This Mountain Cleaning Initiative is not merely an internal event for the KSHOW team, but also a concrete social welfare initiative. Jiufeng Mountain serves as a vital urban green lung for Taizhou and a popular destination for leisure hiking among local residents. With the increasing number of visitors, waste accumulation along the trails has become increasingly prominent.
As a locally rooted enterprise based in Huangyan, KSHOW fully understands that the growth of manufacturing relies on a robust ecosystem and strong social support. We believe corporate social responsibility extends beyond donations or sponsorships—it lies in taking concrete actions to benefit the communities around us.
During the descent, we used a waste collection vehicle to transport eight large garbage bags containing waste materials, totaling approximately 30 kilograms. Although this amount is not substantial, if each person takes away their own generated waste—even by bending down just once—the mountain will become significantly cleaner.
Next time, perhaps we'll choose a different mountain, or perhaps the sky will be clear and vast. But what remains unchanged is that the people at KSHOW are always willing to bend down and do small yet meaningful things—for the environment, for the team, and for themselves.
