Why do i donate to
the ocean cleanup?
What the ocean means to me
I have always had a special connection with the ocean. I grew up in Portugal, a country known for its countless beautiful beaches. Since I can remember, I have spent a significant part of every year of my life close to the sea.
From 2008 to 2012, I was working as a lifeguard at the beaches of Portugal‘s region Alentejo in the summer season.
During that time, I also got to know the downsides associated with the ocean. Not only the risks it poses to swimmers who I often had to remind of the massive force of the sea, but especially the harm we, the people, cause.
Plastic bottles, bags and other trash are being left behind because the people were too lazy to carry it to the next trash can. This has always bothered me and I often spent some time after my work day to clean the beach as best as I could.
However, the realization that the pollution of the oceans goes deeper than some people leaving trash behind on a beach, and that we urgently need to take action, came only later during my journey around the world in 2016/17.
I visited numerous beaches, e.g. in Bali, Thailand, Philippines or Vietnam, and I was shocked about the unbelievable amount of plastic trash floating in the water or being washed up to the sand. I tried to clean some beaches I came across, such as on Hawaii and in Thailand.
On the island of Koh Lipe, the beaches and the water looked clean at first sight, but as soon as I dove a little bit under water (just 2-3 m from the shore), I could not believe what I found. Among other things, I pulled out a huge display board of a restaurant and a whole car tire.
However, there was also a positive side to it: No matter where I was, when people noticed what I was doing, a lot of them joined to help me. This gave me hope that we can really make a difference if we all work together.
Why The Ocean Cleanup?
When I had the idea of The Travel Tool Kit, one of the first things that came to my mind as well was that I could use some of the money I would earn with it to donate to a good cause.
As you know now a little bit about why I care so deeply about clean oceans, you will understand why I chose The Ocean Cleanup for my donations. I am beyond impressed by what the very young founder and CEO Boyan Slat achieved in such a short time, all with persistence and the vision of clean oceans.
I decided to donate 1€ from each The Travel Tool Kit sold to this cause.
What is The Ocean Cleanup and what do they do?
The Ocean Cleanup is a non-profit organization, developing advanced technologies to rid the world’s oceans of plastic.
By utilizing the ocean currents to their advantage, their passive drifting systems are estimated to clean up half the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in 5 years‘ time.
The organization is just at the beginning, and I hope that with my donations, even if they may not be the largest, I can contribute my share to this amazing cause.
Learn more about how their system works in the video.