Marine pollution protection efforts are set to ramp up across Saint Lucia this fall, as the local chapter of the Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN) prepares to roll out the annual International Coastal Cleanup (ICC), a global campaign dedicated to safeguarding coastal and marine ecosystems.
Unlike small-scale, one-off cleanup events, this year’s initiative will bring together a broad coalition of stakeholders, from individual volunteers, local families and student groups to community organizations, private businesses and seasoned environmental advocates. All participants will join hands to remove harmful debris from Saint Lucia’s coastlines while contributing critical data to the global effort to understand and curb marine waste.
CYEN Saint Lucia, the national coordinator for the ICC on the island, is a youth-centered environmental non-profit with a core mission of empowering young generations to lead in climate action, environmental education, advocacy and sustainable development. Across the country, the organization cultivates meaningful youth involvement in environmental stewardship through community-focused projects and cross-sector partnerships. As the national lead for the annual ICC, it collaborates with community groups, government agencies, private sector partners and volunteers to not only execute on-the-ground cleanup work but also raise public awareness of the growing threat of marine pollution and the importance of protecting coastal natural resources.
The International Coastal Cleanup itself is far more than a trash collection event. Beyond removing existing debris from coastlines, the global initiative prioritizes collecting standardized data on the types and volumes of waste recovered during events. This dataset is a vital resource for researchers and policymakers working to identify the main sources of marine pollution and design evidence-based solutions to stop waste from entering coastal and marine ecosystems in the first place.
This year, Saint Lucia’s ICC campaign will span five different coastal locations across two months, running from September through October, giving communities across the island multiple entry points to join the global conservation effort. The first cleanup is scheduled for September 12 at Soufriere Beach, followed by events at Marigot Beach on September 19 and Anse La Voute in Gros Islet on September 26. The campaign will continue into October with a cleanup at Fond’Or Beach in Dennery on October 3, wrapping up at Blackbay Beach in Vieux Fort on October 10.
All on-site cleanup activities are set to kick off at 9:00 a.m. local time, with pre-arranged transportation for registered participants departing from Derek Walcott Square at 8:00 a.m. The organizing committee will provide all necessary supplies for participants, including work gloves, face masks, trash collection bags, and refreshments for volunteers throughout the event.
CYEN Saint Lucia has issued an open invitation to all segments of Saint Lucian society, including members of the public, local schools, community associations, private businesses, non-profit groups, families and individual people of all ages, to register for the event at any of the five locations that fit their schedule.
In a formal statement released by the organization, CYEN Saint Lucia noted that this year’s ICC initiative reaffirms its long-standing commitment to centering youth leadership and community action in addressing pressing environmental challenges. “By creating accessible opportunities for young people and entire communities to take tangible, practical action, our organization aims to embed a culture of environmental responsibility and drive more robust protection of Saint Lucia’s precious natural resources,” the release read.