Why should you volunteer?

We always love to hear from our volunteers and what they enjoy about their experiences with us. Our Sea Champion, Ben, has shared with us why he feels volunteering for Marine Conservation Society is important to him.

Volunteering isn't easy. I'm not referring to the act of giving up one's own time in order to contribute to important work, but instead to finding an organisation that thrives off the contributions of volunteer efforts. I'm glad to say that the Marine Conservation Society embraces such efforts.

At the start of 2019 I found myself working on a freelance basis for the first time which allowed me free time to do something I've wanted to do for many years - dive into the exciting adventure that is volunteering for charities and causes that really got me excited. 

So far I have worked on a voluntary basis for five charities. All charities are based within the environmental/animal welfare/conservation area, but not all are equal. Only with the Marine Conservation Society have I found a place to contribute my time and effort, and in return, become part of an important team that I feel is making a real impact on UK shores. For this I am very glad I have found, and met, some great people within MCS. 

A normal day with MCS consists of carrying out beach cleans on some of the most awesome coastlines in the world. I don't think I'm milking it…have you seen the British coastline on a sunny day?! I've cleaned beaches with local residents of coastal towns, seen companies excited about helping out, and been involved with supporting local schools (kids love the beach and upon finding litter on said beach are very enthusiastic beach cleaners which is very reassuring to witness!)

With the Marine Conservation Society’s beach cleans it's not only the fact that we are removing large amounts of litter off the beaches which makes the work so worthwhile, it is also about promoting education as an important part of the day on the beach. Don't stop reading - learning is cool! 

Beach clean days allow us to show the impacts of items we’re throwing away, even though their effect on our environment might not be immediately obvious. Did you know it takes a disposable nappy up to 500 years to decompose? I didn’t until recently and neither do many people who take part in beach clean days. This stuff is really important, because knowledge is power, and that's important when you are trying to save the world (or at least the oceans). Every second breath you take comes from the ocean, so protecting it and educating people about it is of the upmost importance. Facts like this are flying all over the place at MCS beach cleans, and it's surprising and alarming how some people aren't up-to-date with their biodegradable timescales (right?). 

I've found myself away on trips surveying whales, dolphins and porpoises in seas far away with charities wondering if these mammals will be here much longer if it wasn't for work being done by charities like MCS. Did you know the garbage patch in the North Pacific is nine times larger than the UK? MCS is actively reducing the chances of such garbage patches growing by getting rubbish off the beaches before it joins the ever-growing problem. 

MCS is carrying out important work that is ensuring a future for marine wildlife in our seas and on our shores. If you want to get involved, a good place to start would be the Great British Beach Clean taking place between 20th-23rd September country-wide. If you pop down to the SE coast you could meet me! Any time you can put in is always appreciated and MCS is always very happy to see you there. 

Check out the full list of beach cleans happening for the Great British Beach Clean and regular beach cleans in your area at: mcsuk.org/beachwatch/events.

Although Great British Beach Clean is fast approaching, there is still time to register to organise or participate in a beach clean. Visit mcsuk.org/beachwatch to find out more.

From Beachwatch to Don't Let Go

Balloon litter found on a beach clean

Sea Champion Andy has been organising beach cleans for MCS for a number of years now and he was becoming increasingly concerned about the amount of balloon litter he was finding so he decided to do something about it.

"I got involved in the Don’t Let Go campaign through my initial work as a Beachwatch organiser. I have been running Beachwatch events since 2012 and have frequently found evidence of balloons and sky lanterns during these events. I have run over 20 separate Beachwatch events since 2012 at a number of different locations in local to me.

I decided to get involved in this campaign for two reasons. Firstly to raise awareness locally about the dangers to the environment from balloons and sky lanterns being released. Secondly to do what seemed to be impossible at the time, get a ban introduced by my local Council to stop any balloon and sky lantern releases on land they owned. 

Sea Champion Andy running a beach clean

I had managed to meet a number of local Councillors through running Beachwatch events, some of whom had previously attended my beach cleans. To get a ban introduced, I first contacted these local councillors I had met. I had to be quite persistent phoning or emailing every week then after a few weeks of being passed around to various Councillors and Council officials, eventually I was put in touch with a local Councillor called Diane. Diane luckily is a very passionate, environmentally aware Councillor and she agreed to help.

We met up and discussed the campaign and she agreed to support me in trying to get a ban introduced in the Sefton Metropolitan Borough area. After a further few weeks of intermittent contact, Diane informed me that she had prepared a motion that would go before the next available full Council meeting.

Following the meeting on April 24th, I received the awesome news that the motion had been passed unanimously. This means that Sefton council will be introducing a ban on both balloon and sky lantern releases on council owned land as soon as possible.

My advice to anyone wanting to get involved in this campaign, just do it and don’t let go of the idea of getting them banned in your area. Just be determined and persistent and you will get there." 

Fantastic work Andy! If you'd like to find out more about our Don't Let Go campaign then visit our website - mcsuk.org/dontletgo.  

Inspiring the next generation!

Mini eco warrior chosen to front publicity campaign to encourage more people to pick up litter 

 

Eight year old Jack Bowes who attends Southdown Junior School in Sussex saw his school get overrun by giant inflatable marine creatures thanks to MCS and their school workshop. Here, Jack learned all about the impacts of marine litter to these creatures and was so inspired that he has taken to cleaning up the local beach himself.

He cleared 3 sacks of litter from the beach single handedly, and found quite a few unusual items including an assortment of footwear! Flipflops, shoes, socks, gloves, bottles, cans, fishing litter... all manner of things were collected. But Jack's work is not finished, he plans to return with classmates to help him clear the rest of the litter as soon as possible.

Not only was Jack moved by the workshop, he is an inspiration to others too. As a result of his hard work, he has been chosen to be the face of the Planet Whales Campaign on the lead up to Whalefest 2012 this weekend.

Inspiring the next generation is what the Cool Seas Roadshow is all about, and Sea Champions can really help by promoting the roadshow with primary schools in your area. Email Coolseasroadshow@mcsuk.org for more information. 

Mini eco warrior Jack cleans up Newhaven beach

 

Bexhill Beach Clean!

Family beach clean and education morning a great success

Sea Champions in South and South East England got to grips with a beach clean with the Bexhill Environmental Group (BEG) and Sussex Wildlife Trust - over sixty adults and children were there for the family event making it a great opportunity to teach the next generation all about the problems associated with beach litter.

BEG chairman, Michael Bernard, said, “Our event was a tremendous success and we are absolutely delighted. It was great to see so many children. The Raksha Cubs and pupils from St Richard’s were there in numbers and really enjoyed the whole thing.

If you'd like to get involved in a beach clean in your area this autumn, or even become a Beachwatch Organiser yourself, click here for more information.

 

 



Sea Champion Volunteer Coordinator Ed talks about the impacts of beach litter 

 

Beachwatch goes subaqua!

SCUBA diving Sea Champions found out just how much litter lies beneath the waves.

Dive clubs, divers and snorkellers took part in a litter clean-up… underwater!

Sea Champion Volunteer Coordinator for Wales, Rebecca O'Dowd, organised an underwater clean-up in collaboration with the Swansea Yacht and Sub Aqua Club as part of BSAC's Underwater Litterpick 2012.

Whilst SCUBA divers collected and surveyed litter underwater at Langland and Swansea Bay, volunteers who wanted to remain dry undertook a clean-up and survey of the litter on the beach.

Both the underwater and beach survey results will contribute to the Beachwatch summary report. By finding out where the litter comes from on UK beaches, we can run targeted litter campaigns to influence policy makers and change peoples’ behaviour to try to stop it getting there in the first place. 

"It was great fun! We were surprised that there wasn’t much litter on the sea bed but we did find quite a lot of fishing line and weights. It was a great activity to be involved with and we look forward to supporting MCS in other activities in the future” says Sea Champion Paul Nusinov from Swansea.

The BSAC Underwater Litterpick 2012 was timed to coincide with our annual Beachwatch Big Weekend, and will be running until the end of October so there is still chance to take part.

For more information and to register for the BSAC Underwater Litterpick 2012 go to www.bsac.com/litterpick or call 0500 947202. Don't forget to let you're coordinator know if you are keen to take part!

If you don't fancy getting wet but would like to get involved with Beachwatch, click here.

Sea Champion Paul Nusinov gets ready for the underwater clean-up!

Litter Pick Panic!

Brand new litter awareness activity ran by south west Sea Champions!

Sea Champions Tammy Palmer and Clare Johnson had lots of fun with the new educational game “Litter-Pick Panic!” It’s a great way to educate kids about litter, by recreating the Big-Beach Clean-up in a single paddling pool! All you need to make your beach is a paddling pool, some sand, a few pebbles and some clean and varied rubbish (...but please don’t remove these from a real beach!). After explaining the threats litter poses to marine wildlife, particularly plastics, give the kids 60 seconds to clear the rubbish, after which you can look at the types of rubbish and where they might have come from.

Are you thinking of manning your own MCS stand at an event? Why not run a “Litter-Pick Panic!" activity to attract people to your stand. Get in touch with your Volunteer Coordinator for support.

Any more ideas for children's activities to highlight our key themes of marine protection, sustainable fisheries and clean seas and beaches? Comment below to share your ideas with Sea Champions across the nation!

"Litter-Pick Panic" in action!

Over a tonne of rubbish cleared from South Queensferry - one of the largest ammounts ever collected during an MCS beach clean in Scotland!

Scottish Volunteer Coordinator Matt Barnes has just become a Beachwatch Organiser as part of the Marine Conservation Soceity's Beachwatch program.

Matt organised the first quarterly clean-up of the beach at South Queensferry in May with a team of 33 volunteers, who bagged up one of the largest amounts of rubbish ever collected during an MCS beach clean in Scotland.

The volunteers were blessed with brilliant spring sunshine and collected over a tonne of rubbish including a sofa, TV, trolley and even some bikes!

You too can become a Beachwatch Organiser!

Follow the link or contact your Volunteer Coordinator for more information.

Volunteers at the first Sea Champion beach clean in Scotland!