Step Two Action Post:

1.) For my action project I am planning to do multiple oceanside cleanups in our community. I have organized to execute this action project for the first semester with a few other students in this class, Dorra J. and Itzel C.. In this way, we are able to multiply the impact we have on the environment. We have signed up as a cleanup group with the national organisation of The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. The plan is to go out and clean up any garbage, recycling or compost that is not properly disposed of near lakes and rivers in our area every two weeks. We will take tongs and trash bags, in order to hopefully fill at least one bag of garbage each outing.

2.) There are always obstacles the one must face in no matter what is being done. These obstacles further our problem-solving skills, this is why I am looking forward to any roadblocks or learning opportunities we face during this action project. Many complexities may appear. We may not find a spot with an abundance of garbage, this is a good thing for the environment, however it may slow the project down. In addition, it is likely that since we are in the middle of autumn, we will encounter strong rain or even snow later in the year, we may not always have an efficient way to arrive to the location, and at times, we may be overloaded with school work. All these scenarios are very probable complexities that we may encounter while working on our action project. Having said that, while these may complicate things, they will not stop us from achieving our mission. We are determined to work hard this semester on our environmental endeavour. We will learn to adapt and overcome as everybody must do because as the TEDTalk stated, ‘Everything is complicated’.

3.) Shoreline cleanups have been done for decades with increasing popularity and interest. Throughout the years, since the conversation about climate change has grown in both importance and severity, more and more people are pursuing this activity as a way to take action on a small scale in their community. Yet, even if the impact may be small, the abundance of people creating change through this action totals to a great effort happening around the world. With the increasing threat of climate change this action will continue to thrive and help the environment for years to come. There are also many organizations dedicated to this cause and specifically ocean cleanups. One of the biggest of these types of organizations in Canada is called The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. In 2019, just over 3000 cleanups were held across Canada, most of them being group cleanups. Moreover, almost 84 000 people registered for a cleanup. This is only from one year, in one company, in one country. This goes to show the ocean cleanups have been sustainable for quite some time and will continue to do so in future years.

4.) Yes, this action was organised to provide others in the community with a chance to help us make a difference. Through, the site The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup we have allowed our group to be open to the public. This way, if others would like to join us in our endeavour, they may. We wanted to ensure that if someone wanted to do an ocean cleanup but did not want to do so alone, that they can join our team in order to make a difference as a group. To assure that we are making a positive impact in the most effective and helpful manner possible, as aforementioned, we will continue to go out every two weeks to make the most impact we can. I truly believe in this project and the effect it can achieve. Which is why, my group and I believe in maximizing our impact. Hopefully, this project will lead to a continual actualization of projects like these in the future, not only for this semester and will inspire others to take action in doing impactful project to benefit the community.

We do not have an expert consultant helping us in our project this semester.