The images of Lombok were still in my head even when I already returned to Germany – the terrible pollution in front of such a paradise-like island, but also the inspiring moments with the Indonesian students.
It goes without saying that I was very happy that the English teacher Haris and I kept in touch. We were talking about our life back home, about special holidays and celebrations and how the students were doing – and we would also exchange ideas about plastic recycling.
CLEANING BEACHES AROUND THE WORLD
In the following months I kept on traveling, picking up plastic trash off beaches in Europe, Asia and Central America. I also became a yoga teacher, which inspired me to put my intention on doing something good for this world.
In India, a man came to me while I was cleaning up the beach, looked me in the eyes and said: ‘Thank you. What you do is so important.’ All this played a role of what was going to come next…
When I was in Central America in early 2018, about a year after I visited the school in Lombok, something interesting happened – something that changed the course of my life!
Haris told me in a casual conversation that for some time now they regularly took the students to a joint beach-clean up on Sundays after their school reading.
Hold on, what did you just say???
How remarkable is that!
So my presentation has left a positive impact after all! I was amazed by their initiative and so excited that my ‘small’ presentation had already inspired others in such a lasting way. It seemed like, yes, I really could make a bigger difference for the ocean environment!
"I suddenly realized that I could help save the oceans!"
With this realization I suddenly knew what I needed to do. I wanted to be part of a movement rising around the world. I wanted to help saving the oceans from a plastic death! At first I thought that my contribution could be realized during my travels, with exactly what I had already started in Lombok: On the one side engaging in beach clean-ups to raise awareness to the problem, and on the other side providing education and bringing a change to the way our society consumes plastic around the world.
A VISION IS BORN
The more thought I put into this idea, the more it became clear to me that I wanted more than a solo project. I wanted to create an organization through with both individuals and companies could become part of something meaningful, something that would leave a positive and lasting impact on our blue planet. I wanted to create CHANGE, and I wanted to make it global!
The reason why global change is so crucial is because our oceans are connected with each other all over the world, and so are the ways of garbage ‘flow’. Like puzzle pieces of a big picture, it is all one.
It doesn’t matter if you are on a paradise-island in Indonesia, on a beach at the baltic sea or somewhere in the Arctic ocean – the water on our planet is interconnected. In the end, it is the same water, the same oceans. And all over the world, people want to enjoy the same beautiful water, the same oceans.
SAME oceans - So All May Enjoy
So, SAME oceans became my personal catch phrase – illustrating that there is only one earth and that all oceans are one, but also my vision:
>>> SAME stands tall for So All May Enjoy.
Meaning also that we each and every one of us has to do their part in protecting our unique and diverse ocean environment – so that we may all enjoy this beautiful marine paradise.
Stay tuned and read in my next posts how I started building a non-profit company from scratch!