As the only woman to have sailed around the world three times nonstop, five times in total and twice solo, Dee Caffari is not short of accolades. But for the next eight months, Caffari will be taking to the water to lead a team of international sailors in a race to stop marine litter from destroying our oceans and “turn the tide on plastic” in this year’s Volvo Ocean boat race.
Starting October 22 in Alicante, Spain, Caffari’s team – the youngest and first-ever mixed-gender team in the event’s 45-year history – will be battling against six other Volvo Ocean 65 class race boats across four of the world’s five oceans and for #CleanSeas.
“I’m proud to be leading the first-ever mixed crew with such a strong message of sustainability and diversity. As sailors, we are the voice of the sea and our goal is to spread the message of #CleanSeas and inspire lasting actions in parallel with producing results at the end of the race,” said Caffari.
It is estimated that more than 8 million tonnes of plastic ends up in the oceans each year - the equivalent of emptying a garbage truck of plastic every minute. Plastic waste is wreaking havoc on marine wildlife, fisheries and tourism, and causing at least $8 billion of damage to marine ecosystems.
UN Environment’s #CleanSeas campaign on marine plastics is calling on governments, industry and citizens to end the excessive, wasteful usage of single-use plastic and to eliminate microplastics in cosmetics by the year 2022. Last week, Spain became the 32nd country to join the campaign.
“I feel very privileged to carry UN Environment’s message in this campaign”, said Caffari.
“It’s a topic that engages a great many people and, by taking small steps in the right direction, I think in the end we can make a big difference,” she added.
The 2017-18 Volvo Ocean Race will take the teams 45,000 nautical miles around the globe, across four oceans, six continents and 12 landmark host cities, finishing in June 2018. Seven cities along the way will host an Ocean Summit that brings together political, business and science leaders to find lasting solutions to marine pollution.
“The adventurers taking part in the Volvo Ocean Race will be making their way to some of the most remote and hostile corners of the globe. But the ugly truth is that they'll also be encountering lumps of polystyrene along with icebergs, precious marine life that is feeding on plastic mixed up with plankton, or huge islands of floating plastic,” said Erik Solheim, head of UN Environment.
Launched at the Economist World Ocean Summit in Bali, UN Environment’s #CleanSeas campaign is urging governments to pass plastic reduction policies; targeting industry to minimize plastic packaging and redesign products; and calling on consumers to change their throwaway habits before irreversible damage is done to our seas. cleanseas.org
"This is a global problem and a global shame, and we're grateful to have the support of the Turn the Tide on Plastic crew to take this message far and wide. We need urgent, concrete action at all levels and all around the world. If not, we'll see our oceans turned into a lifeless slurry of garbage,” said Solheim.
Pollution is the theme of the 2017 UN Environment Assembly, which will gather in Nairobi from 4-6 December. Sign the pledge and help us #BeatPollution in all its forms.
