World Ocean Week is here to celebrate the Ocean and our connection to it as humans

Kristal could see her island of The Bahamas suffering from the impact of plastic pollution and wanted to create real change through a no plastic movement. 

Plastic waste was seriously harming The Bahamas’ coastline. Coastal communities are facing a multifaceted issue, dealing with the waste that is generated by the nation itself, the tourism industry, and the marine debris that is lacing the beautiful shores.

Kristal recognised this problem and asked herself, “What do we do with it?”. She knew a movement in The Bahamas was needed. 

Tackle Plastic Pollution

She started The Bahamas Plastic Movement, to tackle the plastic pollution. She created a free plastic camp for local children, and so far, it has educated over 500 students. Kristal didn’t stop there. She drafted a bill of what a single-use plastic ban would look like in the Bahamas. With the help of her students, they arranged a meeting with the environment minister.

 

She wanted to show the passion and drive her students had, so the Bahamas Plastic Movement went into the meeting beating on the desk, “we are the change, we’re the solution, we can fix this plastic pollution”.

The Bahamas movement told the minister why change needed to happen now. Kristal’s work convinced the government to act quickly, and they agreed to ban single-use plastics. The passion the students had for the environment and their future pushed the minister to get the bill passed. The Bahamas Plastic Movement were a part of history and successfully shaped legislation.

Kristal has been globally recognised for her work and won the Goldman 2020 Environmental Prize.

We can see the power of younger generation hold in creating change. Thank you, Miss Kristal, and The Bahamas Plastic Movement, for being Ocean Wavemakers and making a real change.

“It doesn’t matter how old you are, where you’re from, what colour you are. This is your world, this is your future, and you deserve a seat at the table.”

 Image source: The Goldman Environmental Prize 

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