Cycling North Island to save our Coastlines

We (Tess and Bre) have decided to cycle from Cape Reinga to Wellington as a fundraiser for Sustainable Coastlines. ( http://sustainablecoastlines.org/ ) This is a charity that cleans up our oceans and raises awareness of what we can do to prevent plastic pollution. We have given ourselves a month to cycle through back roads, towns, cities and trails. We are leaving for this insane journey on the 20th of February. Along the way we will be documenting the rubbish that we find in our waterways. We will also be visiting schools to give presentations to future generations on how to reduce plastic use and look after our oceans.

$10 donation: Sustainable Coastlines can plant a native tree alongside Aotearoa’s waterways, weed and prepare the planting site, and motivate members of the local community to continue these actions.

$20 donation: Provides 5 pairs of heavy duty gloves for keeping us safe during coastal clean-ups and data collection.

$50 donation: Is enough to buy around 15 native seedlings to plant alongside our waterways.

$100 donation: Is enough to provide reusable gloves and sacks for a clean-up with a whole class of school students.

$500 donation: Is enough to prepare the site and plant 50 trees alongside our waterways to help clean them up.

$1,000 donation: Is enough for Sustainable Coastlines staff to plan and deliver our awareness presentations to 1,835 school students.

Plastic doesn't break down, it only gets smaller. The majority of fish we eat have microfibre plastic, and it's now in our drinking water. We are drinking plastic. It's being feed to baby birds by their mothers. It's choking in the throats of dolphins and turtles, its sitting in the stomachs of sharks and whales and its strangling seals. Every piece of plastic that you've ever used still exists today, and will exist for when your great great grandchildren are born into the world.

While we undertake this journey, we invite you to consider your plastic use, specifically single use disposable plastic. What are some easy changes you can make to stop using plastic? Maybe you can start refusing straws, plastic ice cream spoons, takeaway cups. Bring your own bag, keep cup and water bottle, buy a bamboo toothbrush, look for food options that don't come in plastic. You could decide to start using solid shampoo and conditioner (check out the brand 'Ethique'). You could scope out some refill stations, which are often cheaper and give you the opportunity to choose how much you want of something (Common Sense Organics has a huge range of foods you can refill with your own container!) You could pick up a few pieces of rubbish when you walk along the beach, or make some homemade bread instead of using bread that comes in plastic. You could write a letter to your local shops, cafes, supermarkets, encouraging them to make changes and provide plastic free alternatives.

Remember change starts with the individual and hope is in action <3

All the money we fundraise will go towards Sustainable Coastlines to help our ocean <3