Earth Day
Earth Day was a busy and exciting day for Team Ghost Diving USA. We had the opportunity to do community outreach at 2 events. The first at the Los Angeles County Water District Headquarters in Whittier, California. The other at Pasadena ScienceFest held at John Muir High School in Pasadena, California. Both events were open to the public and anticipated around 2,000 attendees each.
Both events provided hands on learning activities for kids and educational materials related to our cause. Both teams enjoyed providing demonstrations of lift bag inflation and allowing people to try on recreational dive gear.
While we all love to get underwater and remove marine debris, we also love an opportunity to connect with the community and have conversations about why protecting the ocean is important.
The most frequently asked questions were about how people could get involved in our work. For those curious, there are a few ways:
Tell people about us. Share our social media channels, our website information, and our story. Scuba divers have the unique experience of seeing what is happening below the surface of the water. Without seeing the impact of abandoned fishing gear, it can be hard to understand the magnitude of the problem. This is why documentation is at the heart of our work. Through documentation, we can provide the evidence of the negative impact of marine debris and the positive results of our work.
Make sustainable choices. Choose products that are not single use, recycle, practice environmental mindfulness. While convenience can make life easier in the moment, it can have a lasting impact. Single use plastics, as an example, are non-biodegradable. This means that they become litter or sit in a landfill and pollute our environment. Choosing to use a reusable water bottle or reusable straws, for example, can help to reduce single use waste.
Be an informed consumer. Being an informed consumer allows you to make choices that reduce waste, conserve energy, avoid harmful substances, support sustainable practices, promote responsible waste management, and have a positive influence on the environment.
Whittier Team: Jim Babor, Norbert Lee, Curtis Wolfslau and Healthy Seas volunteers, Alisa and Julie.
Pasadena Team: Alex Caillat, Karim Hamza and Katie McWilliams.
