Environment and Food Foundation (E2F) supplements ongoing work in Doula, Cameroon to reduce plastic pollution. E2F opened a new collection point for plastic bottles, raised awareness on proper plastic waste management, and trained 100 unemployed youths and 3,000 students on the reuse of plastic waste bottles to manufacture durable items like eco-benches, bulb coverings, bracelets/bangles.

Rumah Inspirasi Bontang is a 3-part solution to tackle plastic pollution in Berbas Pantai, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. The 3 parts are: 1) A “Coastal School” education program, targeting adolescents in their district; 2) A facilitated workshop on how to process waste, and 3) establishing a community-operated Waste Bank.

This project aims to educate the average New York City resident about the ocean and marine ecosystems that the city interacts with and depends on. To enact these ocean literacy initiatives, the new SOA NYC Hub will use these funds to make an interactive website, create pop-up exhibitions, do classroom demonstrations and in-person cleanups of the critical waterways surrounding NYC.

Semarang, Java has heavily polluted beaches, including Mangunharjo beach, which is directly adjacent to local fishermen housing, and many low-income families. Due to lack of education and resources, many residents of this area throw litter in the ocean and the local estuary. Recently, women in the village have begun to make waste bank and upcycle their garbage into handicrafts, which they would like to sell for a living; but they lack the tools and training to develop and create a market for these items. This project aims to "accelerate" their handicraft enterprises.

Prameya Foundation is expanding upon their work with community-led conservation action in the Sundarbans–the world’s largest mangrove forest–by training and working with women and youth to equip them with the tools to restore local mangrove forests and planting 12,000 mangroves across 3.5 hectares.

As part of her PhD thesis, Juliette will conduct research and interviews into how and why Marine Protected Areas in Europe are successful--or not--through the lenses of policymakers and local stakeholders.

SOA Brunei conducted an Ocean Leadership Camp called AdvocaSEA Camp, which brought together 30 youth leaders from various schools in Brunei to do a capacity-building program focused on marine conservation. The participants had the opportunity to form collaborations and pitch a project at the end of the program, and some participants were awarded a small grant provided by a partnership with the U.S. Embassy in Brunei.

Through our project, Biflores (a local NGO) aims to empower local communities and fishermen to protect their natural heritage by providing them with knowledge, training, and tools to sustainably improve their livelihoods, protect sharks, rays and other marine resources, and understand the vital role of sharks in marine ecosystems.

Bandar Lampung has been ranked the 2nd dirtiest city in Indonesia, and is also home to the second longest coastline in Sumatra. There are no specific initiatives focused on recycling in Lampung, so last year, this group hosted an ocean and waste literacy Summit, the Lampung Youth Marine Debris Summit 2.0, with the theme “Youth and Debris, to Creative Eco-Economy”.