Need a spectacular trip this summer? Add these nature parks to your itinerary
A wise man once said: “You should look at the ocean and realize that no matter how famous you are or how much money you make, you should know that you’ll never be as important as the ocean.” Perhaps that’s the motto these clean-up crews live by.
It’s the greatest expanse on our planet, yet so many of us (minus those of us living on the beach, of course) go years without seeing it. The ocean produces over half of the oxygen we breathe to live and stores fifty times more carbon dioxide than our atmosphere. Many medicines with ingredients that help fight ailments like cancer and heart disease come from the ocean, yet it’s usually the very least of our worries.
Despite everything the ocean does for life on the planet, a lot of people use the ocean as a dumping ground for garbage. Fortunately, there are groups working tirelessly to clean our water up. We’ve gathered some infamous ocean clean-up groups to recognize, but don’t leave it all up to them! The best way to see change is to be the change.
Clean Up The World
The nonprofit organization Clean Up The World builds unity with all communities with a shared purpose of protecting the environment. Working with other organizations and local groups, they manage various activities & events that clean up our oceans.
Clean Up The World educates global communities on the importance of caring for their environmental health by creating support networks.
If you register on their website, you’ll have access to all their tools & resources. Having over twenty-five years’ experience of managing thousands upon thousands of environmental projects in over 100 countries, you’ll be a part of shared experiences that are used to educate the whole world.
Ocean Conservancy
Stationed in Washington D.C., Ocean Conservancy is a leading advocate group who prides themselves on more than just the clean-up. They see the ocean as a living being like us.
Their aim is to protect marine habitats and sustainable fisheries by diminishing human impact. To save our oceans, this ocean clean-up group emphasizes the importance of learning from history by birthing policy changes.
For thirty years, they’ve hosted the International Coastal Cleanup Program who gathers millions of volunteers who clean up the global shores.
Greenpeace
Greenpeace focuses on several problems pertaining to our oceans. Using their networks, including a large online presence, they fight world leaders and confront powerful organizations leading the deleterious fossil fuel industry.
They recognize a critical component in dirtying up the ocean is our plastic footprints, making all of us reflect on our own personal impacts on the earth.
The 5 Gyres Institute
The 5 Gyres Institute’s primary objective is to decrease plastic pollution through research of scientific advancements. Educating through science, art, and even adventure, the organization has successfully brought a ban on plastic microbeads that were used in skincare and cosmetic products in the United States.
Natural Resources Defense Council
The Natural Resources Defense Council keeps their eye on pollution by supporting the fulfillment of laws that save the ocean’s wildlife which involves paying attention to overfished species and keeping “junk” out of the ocean.
They’re efforts include but are not limited to preserving the ocean’s species, preventing harmful fish harvesting practices as well as protecting the coastal communities from offshore drilling.
Blue Frontier Campaign
The Blue Frontier Campaign is composed of individual citizen activists working toward improving ocean policies in the United States. Their mission is to “construct the solution-oriented citizen engagement required to save our ocean, coasts and the communities”.
If you join this group focused on ocean clean-up, you’ll be a part of regional meetings and public education campaigns that push their agenda.
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Spend this summer being a part of world change. Did we miss any groups? Let us know in the comments!
