The article below was written by Lorena Lindenberg and edited by Laura Okida. Liked this type of content? Check out Her Campus Cásper Líbero for more!
What if you were able to help save oceans, beaches and rivers, just with some small donations? Well, that’s what the hashtag #TeamSeas is all about. The global campaign has a goal to raise 30 million dollars, in order to remove 30 million pounds (the equivalent of 140.000.000 kilos) of trash and plastic from the world waters.
Together, the creators of #TeamSeas, American YouTubers MrBeast and Mark Rober, have over 95 million subscribers on their YouTube channels, and they are using their platforms to spread awareness about the project, and to receive more donations.
Both of them released a video on their respectives channels showing them cleaning one of the dirtiest beaches on the planet, and they’ve gotten more than 60 million views combined. With their Campaign Director, Matt Fitzgerald, they coordinated the project, receiving donations from some big institutions such as the Royal Caribbean International and Shopify.
The influencers had already created another campaign, with the hashtag #TeamTrees. This was a similar fundraising project in which the goal was to raise 20 million dollars to plant 20 million trees, and they did it! They raised 23 million dollars, and to this day, still receive donations and are planting 2,600 trees every day. Since it was a huge success, the YouTubers decided to move it to the world waters, and they need our help to achieve their goal!
Ok, this sounds cool in theory, but how does it work? According to the creators of the campaign, they developed a partnership with Ocean Conservancy – for beaches and oceans – and Ocean Cleanup – for rivers – and all of the donations made will be equally spread between the two.
Starting with the oceans, the trained team from the Ocean Conservancy will focus on removing fish gear, and recycling it if possible, since it is one of the biggest and most dangerous plastic polluters in the oceans. In beaches, the Ocean Conservancy will identify which ones will have the biggest impact on the environment when cleaned and gather a group of volunteers to do it. Finally, we have the rivers, which will be cleaned with a different equipment: a new technology, called The Interceptor. It was developed by the Ocean Cleanup, and it’s able to collect trash autonomously, while also being solar powered!
This campaign can help the environment in so many different ways! Besides helping to extend the longevity of many sea and river animals, it can also help to contain the advance of global warming and climate change. The ocean can produce more fresh oxygen, help regulate the weather, and contribute to the development of medicines. By cleaning it, #TeamSeas is contributing to a better maintenance of the planet!
This project has been a success, but they still need more donations. Since the campaign was launched, on October 29th, 2021, more than 16 million pounds of trash were removed. The main goal is to achieve the 30 million pounds by January 1st, 2022, so even though they still have a long way to go, it’s pretty impressive that in one month, they’ve already reached over half of their objective.
If you want to help, you can donate, since every dollar amounts to one less pound of trash in the ocean, or just follow them on social media, searching for the #TeamSeas! You can also buy merch at their online store, after all, the money raised will still support the project.
You can find more information about #TeamSeas on their website. Let’s make this happen and contribute to creating a healthier planet!