On Friday 9 May 2021, Ocean Alliance’s MD, Jo Howard joined more than 50 Sydney CEOs and business leaders who came together at Cove Beach in Manly for a beach clean- up.
The event was designed to show leadership on sustainability and raise awareness of the plastic problem.
In just 60 minutes, 55 CEOs removed 87 kilograms & 27,603 pieces of rubbish
Take 3 is thrilled with this wonderful achievement.
Thank you to our incredible participants for joining us in the 2021 Take 3 CEO Clean-Up.
Clean-Up Data
No matter how clean a beach may look at a casual glance – you can always find plastic pollution. Plastic is an amazing material; it’s light- weight, durable and persistent. And for these reasons, we use a lot of
it.
Tiny pieces of plastic comprised over 40% of our CEO Clean-Up findings
Combine all of these factors together and wherever you are, you will encounter plastic. The problem with plastic is that it doesn’t go ‘away’ or break down. Rather, it breaks up into smaller and smaller pieces
that become microplastics and nanoplastics. Despite finding huge items like the 2P parking sign, these tiny pieces of plastic comprised 40% of our CEO Clean-Up findings at Manly Cove Beach.
However, at 14% of the total items littered, the outstanding winner on the day (drumroll please)… foam pieces.
5,005 pieces of foam found
Foam is used in various industries of isolation or packaging and made of plastic (polyol and polyisocyanates). While quite useful for use as isolation and damper, foam in the environment breaks down into tiny bits of plastic and gets mistaken as food by a variety of creatures.
Photo Credits: Studio Ark Media and Clean-Up participants
Photo Credits: Studio Ark Media and Clean-Up participants
Photo Credits: Studio Ark Media and Clean-Up participants
Fundraising
Participants were encouraged to fundraise in their workplace to assist Take 3 for the Sea achieve its 2023 strategic targets. We are more than thrilled with the amazing results of all the participants.
$35,068
After the event day, we received additional donations and raised a further $5,500. Special mention to Lance Williams from who made a donation of $5000 on behalf of Zoetis Australia Pty Ltd.
All funds raised from the Take 3 CEO Clean-Up will help the organisation deliver vital education programs in schools, surf clubs and communities around Australia. Specifically, you’re helping us to achieve our big goal of educating 1 million school children by 2023
Take3’s Thanks
- We’d like to thank Valerie Taylor for attending the event and giving us her unique insight on the plastic problem.
- Special appreciation to Laura Prael and her team from LEP Digital, with special mention to Pete Gilmour for building and managing the
ceocleanup.com website. - Thanks to Phillip Maenpaa of Studio Ark Media and his assistant Cameron Green for the amazing photographs, drone footage and video production.
- Additionally, we’d like to thank the divers from Underwater Research Group who helped us remove plastic and waste from the seabed and
conduct the microplastics audit. - Thank you to James Griffin, MP Member for Manly and Zali Steggal, Federal Member for Warringah for coming out to support the event.
Special thanks goes to to the Take3 board members supporting us at the event: Chairman Peter Janssen, Treasurer Amy Sommers, Director Sandrina Posterino - Additionally, we want to thank our existing partners for their ongoing support including NRMA who provided the My Fast Ferry transportation
for our participants.
What’s Next?
What can business leaders do now to impact this issue?
Review your plastic usage as a company – How much plastic is used in the production and packaging of your products/services? How much plastic is used in your workplace? Are there steps you can take to start the journey of plastic reduction?
Spread the work about plastic waste – You have seen first hand the plastic problem. Tell your friends, family, colleagues and contacts about your experience. Share the photos and totals on your socials, and with your teams. Help others take the first steps on their “plastic journey”.
Continue to support Take 3 for the Sea – You’ve already been hugely supportive by participating and fundraising. You can continue by supporting Take 3 as a Workplace Giving partner. We also partner with businesses to fund cleanups, produce education programs and support sustainable products