Change language

Dive into an ocean-friendly lifestyle with 5 everyday actions!

Off to the coast for a last-minute holiday? The last thing you want is to share your spot on the beach with leftover rubbish, but unfortunately even the dreamiest destination can be home to traces of marine littering. Surfrider Foundation Europe reckons that each year, a staggering 8 million tonnes of waste ends up in our ocean, adding up to waste islands which are round one third the size of Europe. Scary stuff!

The good news? Wherever you’re headed, you can take small daily actions to reduce your impact on the environment, and ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy a seafront getaway too. Diving into a new, ocean-friendly lifestyle might seem overwhelming for the novice waste warrior, but fear not: we’ve lined up five easy ways to jump start your sustainability goals.

 

1. It’s the final straw

No doubt you’ve seen it everywhere: straws and other disposable plastics are seriously bad news for marine life and our environment. Next time you visit your favourite bar, ask them to ditch the straw for your cocktail (it’s just as good without it, we promise!), or switch to more eco-friendly options like glass, paper or metal.

 

2. It takes two (minutes) to tango

Whether we’re at the beach or enjoying a summer picnic, for most of us cleaning after ourselves might be second nature – but next time you’re out there, why not take two more minutes to clean up the area around you from leftover litter? You’ll have done your good deed for the day, and the environment will thank you!

 

3. Can’t contain this feeling

It’s time to make disposable containers a thing of the past. When you’re dining al fresco, there’s no reason not to opt for the more sustainable packaging options. Wrap your sandwiches in beeswax paper, sip your drinks from a metal straw and pack your snacks to go in a reusable glass container. Fun fact: glass isn’t just ocean-friendly, it’s the safest option for your food too!

 

4. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

The most important step in a more ocean-friendly lifestyle is dropping our waste culture and learning to work with what we have. Start small: mend the hole in that t-shirt, get more use out of that old bike and more importantly, recycle as much as possible to close the cycle! Glass can be recycled endlessly without losing clarity or purity – so make sure to chuck it in your closest bottle bank, and send it on its way to infinity.

 

5. Spread the love

Taking the first steps towards an ocean-friendly lifestyle can be overwhelming, but one way to make it easier? Spread the word! Enlist a friend to join you and motivate each other to do one small step a day for the ocean – and show it to us on social media by using #CheersToTheOcean.

If we want to avoid losing one of the most precious things our planet has to offer, it’s time to start taking care of our oceans. Luckily, small everyday actions really can make a difference. If you want to take on this challenge and set yourself a new sustainable goal, join in on our call: raise a glass to the oceans, snap a photo and share why sustainability matters to you by using #CheersToTheOcean! What are you waiting for?