This time last week, OCEANTEE delivered their first sustainability series workshop and beach clean with The Marine Conservation Society at the Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open where a group of young golfers from The Fife Golf Trust, St Regulus and Lundin Links golf clubs were taught about plastic pollution, marine wildlife and given ideas to take back to their own clubs before heading to the beach.
Parents, guardians, representatives from the tournament including sponsors and players Stacy Lewis (who won the event last year) and Camille Chevalier joined OCEANTEE Ambassador Inci Mehmet and the children on the beach to conduct a scientific survey of the debris left over a 100m area. This data will then be added to the database that The Marine Conservation Society has been collating for over 30 years. This information helps them drive government policy and keep track of the health of our ocean.
“Golf is played in beautiful places,” comments founder of sustainable golf brand OCEANTEE and lead on the FORETHEOCEAN project Ed Sandison. “We want future generations to be able to enjoy the fabulous views and wildlife we all take for granted and that means taking action now to protect the environment. We hope these youngsters go away feeling empowered to become activists and inspire others to take action themselves.”
This project represents collaboration working at its best. OCEANTEE brought together its partners the Marine Conservation Society, who are providing the education, and The Ladies European Tour (LET) who hosted the launch session at The Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open on staged at Dumbarnie Links.
Jenny Griffiths, education manager at the Marine Conservation Society said: “As well as using our beach clean data to understand pollution, the young golfers will also be making their own contribution to our database by taking part in a beach clean. We’ve been cleaning beaches and collecting data for over 30 years, which helps us identify patterns and inform our campaigns, so these young people really will help shape the future of our work.”
This is all aligned with the sustainability initiative that the LET launched last year – Celebrating the Green, presented by Dow delivered in close partnership with the GEO Foundation – which aims to champion environment, climate, and community action across women’s golf. After the introduction of this initiative, the LET was delighted to announce OCEANTEE as a Proud Supplier for the 2021 season with players and Pro-Am competitors having access to their award winning durable and sustainable bamboo tees. Now, OCEANTEE and the Marine Conservation Society are also set to deliver this educational session as part of the Tour’s sustainability initiative.
“The LET is committed to working with our partners to create a positive change, which is why we are so pleased to be able to support this amazing project. There is an immediate impact in terms of the beach clean and in the longer term, it will be part of driving the conversation around the practical implications for golf and the environment,” commented LET commercial director Emma Allerton.
