Funding Grassroots Solutions

Mikoko Pamoja is a community-led project to protect and restore mangroves through the sale of carbon credits. Their project tests the Riley Encasement Technique, an innovative replanting method, in a bid to rehabilitate mangroves in the denuded high energy intertidal areas of Gazi bay.

CarbonEthics is a startup, not-profit organization running Project Tumbuh to directly sequester carbon through the conservation and restoration of coastal habitats (mangroves, seagrass, and coral) while also enhancing the livelihood of local communities. SOA is supporting them to conduct stakeholder mappings and assess carbon stock potential as well as gain formal government accreditation. 

Go Zero Waste is an App (iOS and Android) that shows plastic-free alternatives for everyday items and then shows where to buy it in your area. The app challenges users to start a zero-waste lifestyle with new sustainable habits and rewarding them with a gamification feature.

Mymizu (“mizu” is water in Japanese) provides a free water refill platform that connects people to 200,000+ locations globally where they can refill their water bottle, instead of buying bottled water. SOA is supporting them in developing materials for volunteers to carry out their own workshops across Japan, scaling their impact.

The Thresher Shark Champion Program trains local youths with leadership, communication, and conservation knowledge to undertake conservation initiatives that will stimulate behavior change of local communities who are targeting thresher sharks and support the transition to alternative livelihood solutions.

Saltwater Classroom is a nonprofit that runs weeklong workshops focused on ocean science and conservation for young students. Through SOA support, Saltwater Classroom has pivoted their in-person programming to the virtual world, creating a unique opportunity for students across the world to connect with one another and learn from ocean experts. In November, Saltwater Classroom ran a three week virtual workshop that featured live sessions, encouraged hands-on activities, and fostered creative inquiry amongst its participants.

Stop Trashing It is a network of youth helping people shift awareness into action when it comes to living lighter on the planet. They aim to ease these habit changes and encourage self-accountability through three action areas: Act Now Workshop Series, Digital Communications Program, and Action Campaigns.

This project collects data on Manta Rays in The Nusa Penida Marine Protected Area (MPA), and couples this information with individual sightings data to understand their population demographics and dynamics. The information garnered from this study will provide data on manta ray life-history parameters and lend insights into whether sites repeatedly used by smaller individuals can be considered nurseries for this species, which is an understudied aspect of manta ray ecology. Information from this study will inform tourism management within the MPA.

Virtual Diving is an environmental education project inspired by Google Cardboard. Through virtual reality glasses made of recycled cardboard, students take a virtual tour in different marine ecosystems using the Google app "Expeditions". The Virtual Diving team knows that most people never have and probably never will have the opportunity to dive in their entire lives. They also know that this is a big problem for the oceans, because it is impossible to preserve what you do not know. 

This project carries out clean up activities and monitoring of litter and microplastics in the Sanguino River and streams near a protected coastline located in Maro-Cerro Gordo Cliffs Natural Area (Nerja and Almuñécar, Spain). Previous monitoring work by the organization associated with this grant (Hombre y Territorio) has identified heavily polluted sites due to intensive agriculture. 

12 tonnes of trash along River Gambia (Barra to Kartong) were collected, as well as activities to sensitize community members (especially those who travel on the river ferry) about the effects of riverine and marine pollution through radio programs and surveys. Gambia Ocean Heroes is a service-learning project under the GREAT Institute created in 2018. Apart from clean up activities, the GOH supports local communities and organizations to take the lead in efforts towards promoting ocean health and reducing plastic pollution. Since 2018, GOH has collected 350 tonnes of trash along The Gambia’s coastline and is excited to expand this effort to rivers. 

River Clean-Up Operation (RECOVER) is a collaborative community service project conducted by SOA Brunei, YSEALI and Save Kampong Ayer to gather solid wastes found along the Brunei River in Kampong Ayer (Water Village). This project aims to provide immediate short-term relief to solid waste discarded in the environment by engaging volunteers and the local Kampong Ayer community through the collective effort of a mass river clean-up. To date, RECOVER has engaged 186 volunteers and successfully collected 270 bags of waste.

A-B-Seas is a two-day experiential learning camp for children and teens to nurture interest in marine life and inspire pro-environmental behavior. This program introduces participants to basic concepts in marine ecology, conservation, and leadership, with special attention to the different roles and responsibilities humans have. Each lesson is accompanied with an activity or task, represented by a marine species. Each camp ends with an assignment for attendees to pursue in their own social circles (e.g., convince their parents to use reusable bags for groceries, write a letter to their principal about waste segregation in their school, etc.). 

Project MariKnows is a project that aims to empower Maritime professionals and students (Marine Engineering and Marine Transportation) in the Philippines as leaders in marine conservation by hosting a two-day seminar-workshop and creating an institutionalized Learning Kit. The Philippines is the 2nd largest producer of seafarers around the world, so it is essential that they understand the most pressing issues of their industry including ballasting, marine litter, noise pollution, eliminating carbon emissions in the shipping sector, and oil spills.

The Sea Our Seas Docuseries is a joint project between Ecovybz Environmental Creatives and 4 Change TT where six short documentaries will be created that highlight the oceans, marine resources, and problems and challenges facing effective ocean management in Trinidad and Tobago. The topics addressed include: fisheries, pollution, coral reefs, ghost gear, the Blue Economy, and climate change. This docuseries will educate on ocean resources and ocean problems, showcase solutions and mobilize actions, present stories from different stakeholders involved in ocean management, and aid in sharing information with schools and other interested bodies.

The science of taxonomy and the art of biological specimen collections go hand in hand to illustrate and catalogue the importance of life on Earth, particularly where marine biodiversity loss is increasing at alarming rates. This project aims to: 1) Curate selective marine organisms and illustrated graphics to debunk misconceptions of taxonomy through the art of epoxy resin, 2) prepare information for resin specimens and blocks via QR codes, with video links from experts related to themes of acidification, aquatic invasives, destruction of habitat and pollution, 3) create awareness through advertising and create an educational toolkit and exhibition.

WindKart Beach Clean-up conducts regular beach cleanups using their own specific 'windkarts' that are suited to the wide, windy beach. They also sort the waste they collect and obtain data which will both inform sensitization projects and demonstrate the high amount of pollution generated by fishermen and mussel farmers who use and discard plastic gear. The team is engaging with corporates to have employees participate as part of CSR policies and in the future, they aim to offer consulting services to those companies so that they can reduce their impact.

Sawfish Project Indonesia is an interdisciplinary project that seeks to provide data about sawfish to local and national governments to implement legal protections for them. The project will conduct scientific research using Environmental DNA (E-DNA) and fisheries surveys to investigate the problem of sawfish bycatch, which is one of the major factors leading to the decline of sawfish populations in Merauke, Indonesia. Sawfish Project Indonesia ultimately aims to enhance the capacity of indigenous people in Merauke to continue the important work of sawfish conservation locally. This project will perform an incubator workshop to teach the youth of Merauke about sawfish conservation.

A project in partnership with the Cameroon Ministry of Environment, Nature, and Sustainable Development to raise awareness among fishermen to improve fishing practices with the aim of conserving the endangered sea turtles. Over 3,000 fishermen in 4 fishing communities took part, including 30 fishermen association leaders who agreed to serve as ambassadors for the project and to continue to spread awareness in their community. Volunteers from the University of Buea played key roles in door-to-door sensitization, which contributed to an estimated 75% increase in awareness amongst the fishing community on the ecological importance of sea turtles.

The ocean plays a critical role as a climate regulator by absorbing about 30% of human emissions of carbon dioxide, but increasing levels of plastic waste threatens this key ecosystem function. This project seeks to leverage data and storytelling tools to spotlight the challenge of marine pollution and its dangers to society. The project also deploys a digital campaign involving use of short videos and infographics to educate residents across West Africa on the dangers of marine pollution, and improve practices of waste management.