Vestas 11th Hour Racing joins Take 3 for Sea Campaign in Volvo Ocean Race

Alicante stopover, practice race on-board Vestas 11th Hour Racing - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18 © James Blake / Volvo Ocean Race

From the high seas of the Volvo Ocean Race, Vestas 11th Hour Racing announced their commitment to join the #Take3fortheSea movement to fight plastic pollution through simple actions. The concept is easy, anywhere you go, be it the beach, the marina or a walk in the woods, pick up at least three pieces of litter.

As part of this engagement, 11th Hour Racing, co-title partner of Vestas 11th Hour Racing, will give Take 3 a $10,000 grant – this is the fourth of twelve grants that 11th Hour Racing will award throughout the 2017-18 Volvo Ocean as part of the teams legacy project.

To help grow this global initiative and be active players in mitigating the issue of ocean pollution, the sailors of Vestas 11th Hour Racing have created a video to encourage their fans to join them! Please help spread this movement by sharing this video - and picking up three pieces of litter on your next walk! Show your work and help spread the message by snapping a picture of the trash and sharing with the hashtags #Take3fortheSea and #Vestas11thhourracing.

Tim Silverwood, co-founder, and CEO of Take 3 joined the team in Melbourne to discuss the movement's impact and plans for the future. Take 3's aim is to use education to inspire participation to reduce global plastic pollution. The organization's education programs have reached over 120,000 school students and over 150,000 community members since 2011. Through technology and online communications, the group aims to expand globally and develop citizen science programs to enable community members to provide valuable information on plastic pollution distribution and sources. Additionally, Tim made a splash as the leg jumper for the start of Leg 4.

"Take 3 are pleased to be recipients of this grant and are thrilled to see the global attention that Vestas 11th Hour Racing and the Volvo Ocean Race are providing to the plastic pollution issue. It was wonderful to meet the team and learn of their passion and commitment for ocean conservation. Jumping off the back of the vessel as it sped towards Melbourne Heads was an experience I'll never forget! Take 3 will utilize funds to fuel our education programs in schools, communities and online." Tim Silverwood, co-founder, and CEO of Take 3.

"I really enjoy the simplicity of Take 3's mission while tackling what can be a rather scary topic," said Mark Towill, Co-founder and Team Director of Vestas 11th Hour Racing. "With an estimated 8 million tons of plastic entering the ocean every year, it is easy to get discouraged, but programs like Take 3 use simple action to inspire hundreds of thousands of people, which can lead to profound impact."

Lasting Legacy
At each Volvo Ocean Race stopover, Vestas 11th Hour Racing will be meeting with a local non-profit to learn more about their environmental work. 11th Hour Racing will be giving a $10,000 grant to each of these non-profits as part of their mission to leave a lasting legacy beyond the race. Previous grant recipients are: Asociación De Naturalistas Del Sureste in Alicante, Spain; Circular Economy Portugal in Lisbon, Portugal, Environmental Monitoring Group in Cape Town, South Africa.