What do cigarette butts, bottle caps, plastic shopping bags, fishing line and plastic straws all have in common? They’re all taking over our beautiful beaches. Our oceans are filling with plastic waste by the minute, and we need you to help us save it!
The trash piling up on our coastlines and floating around in our oceans have immense effects on our wildlife, people and local economies. Recent Ocean Conservancy studies show us that 59% of seabirds, 100% of sea turtle species and over 25% of fish from global seafood markets have already been exposed to all this plastic waste. So, with all that, it’s no secret that our seas need saving. Our beaches give us so much, and it’s time that we give back to it.
Plastic and other waste washing-up on a beachHow can I get involved with beach conservation?
There are so many ways to get involved with beach conservation. One of the most important ways to get involved is through educational outreach. No, you don’t have to have a PhD in marine science, but it helps if you’ve done the right research. Keeping the conversation open about ocean pollution and its effects on our communities will prompt more people to get involved.
Other ways to get involved with beach conservation include eating sustainable seafood, conserving energy, using reusable or biodegradable products, joining beach clean ups and so much more!
Where do I start?
With so many great organizations and information out there, it can be super overwhelming to figure out where to start. The best place to start is at home. Do some research on the effects of ocean pollution, if you haven’t already. Limit the amount of plastics you use everyday, and be cautious about the kinds of seafood you’re purchasing to help lessen the demand for overexploited marine life.
In just about every community near a coastline, there’s a group of people already taking action against ocean pollution. Research what these groups are doing in your area and contact them about volunteering for local beach cleanups. There’s never too many helping hands to clean our beautiful coastlines!
Find out here if you have a local chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, a global network of coastal communities fighting to save the ocean, in your area!
Volunteers doing a coastal clean-upWhat if I don’t live near the beach?
Most people don’t! Don’t let location get in your way of joining the fight to save the sea. There’s tons of ways you can get involved, even if you don’t live anywhere near a beach! Ocean conservation largely starts at home, anyway.
How much plastic do you use every day? What do you do with it when you’re finished? Where does it go when the garbage men take it away? Long-story-short, after weathering down, into tiny micro-plastics, and mixed with other small plastics, it ends up floating around us on our next beach vacay. Gross! Let’s not keep letting this happen!
We’re not saying to go start an entire campaign—though, you totally can! But, ocean conservation starts with making some simple changes in your everyday life. Instead of plastic utensils and water bottles, use only reusable ones. Don’t buy or support items that harm marine life in the making of it. To reduce your carbon footprint, which largely affects climate change of the ocean, find ways where you can conserve energy throughout the day.
Do my local efforts actually help?
Yes! Imagine if every single person joined the fight to help save our beaches and oceans. The results would be a-maaazing! Thanks to the annual Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup, over 220 million pounds of trash have already been collected by more than 12 million global volunteers in the last 30 years. But, we still have a long way to go.
Whether you believe it or not, even the smallest actions can make a huge impact. It’s all about spreading awareness, and getting others to join in on these small actions.
Trash-free beachWhat is CheapCaribbean doing to help save our oceans?
We’ve got some exciting plans coming up and we want to send big waves. But, for starters, we’ve all pledged to say "suck it, straws!" Watching our sweet sea turtles suffer from plastic straws is a total buzzkill, and we’re not about it! So, we want to help put an end to that. Over 100 of our resort partners have also said goodbye to straws!
We’ve committed to stop using plastic straws, and you should too! Join us, and take the pledge to stop using plastic straws. Together, we can save our oceans.
CheapCaribbean wants to help where it can in the fight to conserve our oceans and keep our beaches clean. Too often, we’re seeing footage of trash washing-up on our coastlines, sea turtles being wrapped in plastic and other marine life deteriorating because of our toxic waste. No one likes seeing this happen to our beautiful beaches and gentle sea creatures. Let’s change this, together. Let’s get involved and make the conversation louder about ocean conservation. We’re ready, are you?
