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Pro Ocean is official partner of 1% for the Planet.
What we do?
collect ocean plastics!
create fair, full-time jobs with health insurance.
launch educational schoolprojects to teach children about the impact of discarded plastics.
provide environmental education projects about pollution to inspire future generations to protect the oceans.
save marine life from death due to ocean plastics and protect mangrove ecosystems.
soon we will operate a small, decentralized recycling unit in the Philippines to recycle previously non-recyclable waste (e.g., multilayer packages).
In all our projects, we particularly focus on acting as sustainably and effectively as possible. In this regard, we have outlined key points in our “Pro Ocean Approach” that align with the the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
How we do it?
We have a team of 15 employees – 6 in Germany and 9 in the Philippines. Together with our community, we have collected over 201 tons of ocean plastics and saved more than 82 tons of CO2 through recycling. Since the start of the project at the end of October 2023, we have already been able to reach over 2,300 primary school children to introduce them to the mangrove ecosystem. (As of July 1, 2024)
COLLECTING OCEAN PLASTIC PROPERLY
OUR MOTIVATION:
In order to protect nature as much as possible, we collect by hand and with people in permanent employment. This not only ensures that everything is collected (including cigarette filters, for example), but also creates fair jobs and long-term local awareness.
SCIENCE-BASED APPROACH:
Our collection activities are based on the latest scientific findings. We also collect all the data from our activities and are in contact with various scientists to improve our work even further.
Why in the Philippines? If you want to take action against ocean plastic, you have to start in the Philippines. There are exactly 2 reasons for this. Firstly, the Philippines is the country most affected by ocean plastics and where plastic is most likely to become ocean plastic. Secondly, the Philippines is one of the few mega-biodiversity countries.
ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION: ECOSYSTEM MANGROVES
OUR MOTIVATION:
Child-friendly environmental education for primary school children on the island of Negros to build long-term awareness of the importance of healthy ecosystems.
Experiencing the mangrove ecosystem:
Gemma, our teacher, has been working since 2023, inspiring children all over Negros Oriental about mangroves and their extraordinary abilities.
Gemma: “It’s important to me that the children don’t just have lessons, but are really excited! That’s the only way they’ll keep it for later.”
She therefore first explains a few basics about the mangrove ecosystem to each class and then the children go out into nature and play various mangrove games and are given mangrove seedlings to grow and care for.
RECYCLING PROJECT:
OUR MOTIVATION:
We collect everything that does not belong in the environment. For this reason, we have a lot of waste that cannot be recycled. We want to change this and increase local value creation in the process
INNOVATIVE RECYCLING:
Currently, the waste that we cannot recycle accounts for more than half (approx. 57%) of all ocean plastic collected. At the current rate of collection, we have to send over 1 ton of waste to the landfill per week.
Our solution? A small, decentralized recycling unit that can convert this waste into urgently needed fuel alternatives and requires no additional energy to do so. It is operated and maintained by the locally trained Pro Ocean team and when it’s up and running, we kill two birds with one stone – less ocean plastic and increased local value creation.
