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Earth Day Everyday All About Earth Day Join Ocean Blue Project

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This year marks the 53rd anniversary of Earth Day and Ocean Blue Project’s 10th Birthday!

Earth Day Everyday All About Earth Day Join Ocean Blue Project

Our oceans and waterways and the marine life they support are integral to our lives and people are wondering how to stop plastic pollution in the ocean. And they’re being threatened by plastic. We are raising awareness through CleanUps and raising Earth Day donations of $100,000 to recover 500,000 pounds of plastic and debris from our one world ocean and you can take part.

Earth Day pledges and donations toward Earth Month and open all month of April long include Common Heir, RainMaker AdVentures, EarthHero, Swag Bar, CarStickers, Thibaut, Next Level Burger, ZenWTR, Southern Glazer Wine & Spirits and more along with individual donors like you  = so far $50,528.00 in pledges to support the removal of over 250,000 pounds of plastic and debris in 2023.

This year, Ocean Blue is also in collaboration with Earth Day Oregon and in honor of the state where Ocean Blue was founded in 2012. 

Ocean Blue is a 1% for the Planet nonprofit partner and collaborates with many business partners through this effort too. 

United Nations has declared this the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, or the “Ocean Decade.” Join our Earth Day campaign in your local community by leading a CleanUp Crew. You’ll be helping our environment and precious ocean ecosystem when you lead your own group of volunteers or donate to support Ocean Blue Project’s mission to recover 5 million pounds of plastic and debris by the middle of the UN Ocean Decade.

Those who give an Earth Day donation of $50 or more will become Annual Members of Ocean Blue Project get a free reusable water bottle donated by Healthy Human.

And if you contribute during Earth Month, you’ll be entered to choose from prizes generously donated by contributors listed below. Also, give $50 or more and you will receive a reusable Ocean Blue water bottle donated by Healthy Human.

You’ll have a chance to win exciting prizes by giving $100 or more during Earth Week! Signup for our newsletter below for details and congratulations to Mark Bledsoe of Nashville, the prize winner of our Annual Save the Waves campaign including products generously gifted by Patagonia, SiiZu, Badger Balm, Healthy Human and more. 

You can also opt for an annual corporate donation and join the list of organizations supporting our mission through sponsorships and donations.

And while we have plenty to share about the exciting plans we have in store, it is always important to take a step back and reflect upon the work put in to get us to this point today. 

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The History of Earth Day

Let us rewind to the 1960s when three pivotal events took place: Rachel Carson’s New York Times bestseller Silent Spring had been published, the Santa Barbara, California oil spill just happened, and less than half a year after the oil fire on the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio occurred. These events and many others led people to prioritize the environment, raise awareness, and make their voices heard.

Carson’s masterpiece, Silent Spring, explained the harmful effects chemical pesticides — a large part of agriculture in the United States — had on the planet. She detailed how pesticides such as DDT made their way up the food chain — from killing bugs to birds to even sickening children. This book played a crucial part in raising awareness regarding environmental deterioration.

Both disasters garnered plenty of media coverage, which was uncommon with previous events. People saw first-hand the damage from these environmental disasters from video footage and photographs taken in Santa Barbara of oil-soaked birds, deceased fish, and blackened beaches ridden with oil.

The second incident occurred five months later in Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland was one of the oil refining centers in the United States, and its waterways were constantly in use. The Cuyahoga River oil fire only lasted for 30 minutes; however, within those 30 minutes, there was plenty of media coverage — even Time magazine covered the disaster.

Who Started Earth Day?

In 1969, with inspiration from the anti-Vietnam War teach-ins, taking place across college campuses in the United States, Senator Gaylord Nelson was one of the leaders to develop Earth Day. He was ready for change. At a conference in Seattle, Nelson spoke about the concept of Earth Day and invited everyone to get involved.

A young activist from Stanford named Denis Hayes had been selected as the national coordinator for Earth Day. Hayes worked alongside student volunteers and staff members from Senator Gaylord Nelson’s cabinet to make Earth Day a success.

Local communities and hundreds of schools fueled by pure passion led to the massive number of participants on the first Earth Day in 1970. Over 20 million people across the United States raised awareness to process our planet.

Earth Day Theme for 2023

Today, Earth Day is celebrated by over 1 billion people in more than 193 countries. The theme for Earth Day 2023 is “Invest in Our Planet.” What would it look like for the Ocean if we all offset our plastic use and invest in a clean world ocean? What if we all give $1 in Earth Day donations to Ocean Blue for every 5 pounds of plastic we use so Ocean Blue can recover a pound for every $1? How much less plastic would that look like for marine wildlife that call the ocean home?

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The Relationship Between our Oceans and our Earth

Did you know the ocean covers over 71% of the Earth’s surface?

Take a moment to visualize that.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of Ocean Exploration explains that “the ocean influences weather and climate by storing solar radiation, distributing heat and moisture around the globe, and driving weather systems.”

We would be remiss not to give a special shoutout to a few notable members of our ocean — the plankton and the whales. Whales and phytoplankton contribute to over half of Earth’s oxygen. Over half! How amazing is that?!

As you know, we can talk about the ocean all day. We love our vast, mysterious, salt-water haven, and we want to do all we can to protect and restore it. This Earth Day, and every day, we hope you join us.

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Ocean Blue’s Earth Day 2023 Agenda

Now that we’re all caught up to speed, let’s talk about this year’s events. What are our plans for Earth Day 2023? We are glad you asked! We have plenty in store with our partners this year, and we hope you can Go Beyond Green in 2023 and Go Blue!

Below, please find our agenda and let us know if you have any questions, ideas, or partnerships you would like to contribute:

  • CleanUp Crew Leaders organizing Earth Month CleanUps on the Central and Northern Oregon Coast, Long Beach in Southern California, Delray Beach in Florida, Puget Sound in Seattle, Rockaway in New York, Massachusetts parks and many more locations around the United States.
  • We’re excited to be joined for a 6th consecutive year as an Annual Corporate Member by HMTX Industries.
  • EarthHero is pledging to remove 5 pounds of ocean plastic and debris for every customer order during the month of April. This is on top of a $2,500 pledge for EarthHero’s 2nd year as an Ocean Blue Annual Corporate Member and they are pledging to recover 7,500 pounds of plastic and debris from beaches and ocean bound waterways in 2023. Way to Go Blue, EarthHero!  
  • Earth Breeze will Go Beyond Green in 2023, by sponsoring an Oregon CleanUp led by Ka ‘Aha Lāhui o ‘Olekona Hawaiian Civic Club of Oregon and SW Washington by providing materials and samples of their laundry detergent sheets free of plastic packaging. Earth Breeze is also providing t-shirts for a limited number of CleanUp Crew Leaders and their CleanUp Crews this year. Could this be you? 
  • Lead your own CleanUp Crew and Create a Cleanup from the Volunteer Opportunities tab above!
  • Next Level Burger is also pledging to remove 5 pounds of ocean bound plastic and debris for every Organic Ocean Blue Banana shake by donating $1 for every shake sold. This runs all Earth Month long!
  • This April 3-7, Little by Little is hosting a five-day crowdfunding campaign designed to help GlobalGiving partners around the world cultivate a robust network of small-dollar donors. All eligible donations of up to $50 (per unique donor per organization) will be matched at 50% during the campaign – funds will not run out.
  • We also want to thank Patagonia for donating two incredible platforms that make the behind-the-scenes side of Ocean Blue so much easier through professional and CleanUp volunteer support: Catchafire.org and Patagonia Action Works.

Earth Week Prizes

Remember, when you give $100 or more during Earth Week, April 17th through April 23rd, you will be entered to win one of three prizes donated by our generous business partners along the west coast places we love to clean up:

  • Caffe Ladro – two (2) $25 gift cards (Puget Sound area)
  • Cornucopia & Westraunt Concepts – two (2) $10 gift cards to Mucho Gusto, Bill & Tim’s Dickie Jo’s or Dickie Yo’s and gift card to Cornucopia (Eugene area) 
  • Polly’s Pies – Pie for a month for the rest of the year (Los Angeles area)
You’ll also be supporting the removal of 500+ pounds of debris and plastic pollution. 
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Thank you to our incredible business partners for contributing to our goal and for sharing our vision of a clean world ocean.

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Thibaut - Wallpaper, Fabric, Furniture
Car Stickers logo
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Swag Bar Logo
Common Heir

National Beach Cleanup East Coast Tour 2023

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Let's save our One World Ocean

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922 NW Circle Blvd 160-146 Corvallis, OR 97330 - office@oceanblueproject.org
www.Ocean Blue Project is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit.

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