GUYOT environnement - Team Europe: Every nautical mile counts
by Offshore Team Germany 26 Apr 2023 15:35 BST
The new partnership of GUYOT environnement - Team Europe with the Berlin-based company CleanHub is presented on the yacht's boom © Gauthier Lebec / GUYOT environnement - Team Europe
GUYOT environnement - Team Europe is strengthening its commitment to ocean protection and plastic waste recycling by partnering with Berlin-based CleanHub, an organization whose mission is to keep plastic pollution out of our oceans.
GUYOT environnement - Team Europe's Team Manager, Jens Kuphal and CleanHub's Founder and Co-CEO Joel Tasche have set an ambitious goal to collect a minimum of 20,000 kilograms of plastic waste as the team covers the remaining 12,000 nautical miles in The Ocean Race. A promise they hope to surpass. CleanHub has built a network of local collection hubs that connect over 100,000 households in coastal regions across Southeast Asia to organized waste management systems. This partnership will further accelerate their efforts in promoting resource-saving practices and plastic recycling during The Ocean Race.
The Ocean Race is one of the world's toughest and most challenging team sports. Throughout the race, teams take spectators on a journey to remote regions, revealing the ocean's beauty and the impact of human intervention. Over its 50-year history, The Ocean Race has highlighted climate change, overfishing, and ocean pollution, with a commitment to ocean protection and scientific contributions, such as data collection and water sampling. As a global platform for environmental campaigns, the event unites teams worldwide in their shared mission to protect the environment.
CleanHub, a company deeply committed to addressing the growing issue of plastic waste in oceans, was founded by co-CEO Joel Tasche, who has personally witnessed the impact of plastic pollution on marine habitats and food sources. "In addressing the issue, we learned that about two billion people are not connected to an organized waste disposal system. But the waste continues to be generated and is often disposed of through uncontrolled burning, which releases significant amounts of CO2, or by dumping it into bodies of water. The pollutants and micro-particles seep into the tributaries and thus into the oceans," explains Joel Tasche. To tackle this problem, Joel Tasche and the team at CleanHub developed a platform connecting consumer goods companies and environmental initiatives, enabling them to collaborate and contribute financial resources to support waste collection in affected regions whilst improving overall environmental footprint.
Plastics such as PET and HDPE are recycled. For materials that cannot be recycled, local thermal recycling processes, like in cement production, are employed. CleanHub offers full transparency throughout the entire process of collecting and recycling plastic waste, empowering companies to confidently showcase their commitment to the environment. By carefully tracking each step, from waste collection to recycling or repurposing, CleanHub provides reliable data that validates a company's green initiatives. This not only enhances a company's reputation but also fosters trust among consumers and stakeholders.
Participating in this year's The Ocean Race, CleanHub aims to encourage more initiatives and partnerships to raise awareness about environmental issues. Regarding the collaboration with GUYOT environnement - Team Europe, Joel Tasche says, "It's an ideal match in many ways. Our shared commitment to the environment recognizes that challenges are best addressed collectively. Additionally, we look forward to fruitful exchanges and knowledge-sharing with the team's existing partners, as fostering eco-friendly solutions can only be achieved through collaboration."
The enthusiasm for the joint project is mutual. "During the race, our team constantly takes water samples to examine them for the level of microplastics. The issue of water pollution by plastics and ways to address this problem are central to our campaign. With our partners GUYOT and Archwey, we are publicising the possibilities of resource-saving waste disposal and recycling of plastics into the economic cycle. The careful handling of the resource water is also trained by our partner Water Family", says Jens Kuphal, Team Manager of GUYOT environnement - Team Europe. "To have found a partner in CleanHub who, through innovative ideas, makes waste disposal and the reuse of recyclable materials possible in areas that have been cut off from it so far, rounds off our commitment to the environment. After all, our participation in The Ocean Race is not just an end in itself. The bigger task than success on the race course is success in protecting the oceans."
Race tracker available here.