Plastic Monsters at the Malibu Farmers Market!

On August 8th 2010, Team Marine worked with the Plastic Pollution Coalition at the Malibu Farmers Market. 5 Gyres also had a booth there, who educated the community. At the Farmers Market, Team Marine members Aidan, and Kou dressed up in the bottle costumes as a bottle and bottle cap "monster" and educated many Malibu community members on the issues of single use plastics. The team of "monsters" asked people to sign their petition to ban single use plastic bags in Santa Monica, which are already banned in Malibu. By the end of the day, Team Marine got about fifty signatures.

ACE Student Leader Training

Kou and Aidan attended a student leader training seminar led by the Alliance for Climate Education. Team Marine has been close with ACE, and we love them for being Eco-Beasts like ourselves. They invited us to learn about how to create and maintain a successful environmental group, which was a lot of fun (especially the great food!) We encourage everyone reading to attend one of their seminars, which is completely free. More information can be found here. ACE pushed our limits when they challenged us to make a video around Culver City, explaining one D.O.T. we accomplish everyday. A DOT is a pledge to Do One Thing to help the environment - and cool the climate. We decided to make a video about ten DOTs - Team Marine's ten R's. Our video came out great, and we all had a hilarious time making it. We will upload it once we receive a copy of the video. A big thanks to Sophie and Ethan of ACE for leading the seminar, as well as Sony Pictures Studios for letting us attend the event on their studio lot.

Sea Monster Sculpture at SMPA

Hey fellow Eco-Beasts. Here's the scoop on an event Team Marine attended on July 8th, 2010 at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium. The event we attended was a volunteer enrichment seminar. Team members Aidan and Talia learned how to explain disturbing, immense problems that are currently occurring around the world to children. It prepared us to better inform the public on environmental problems, thanks to SMPA volunteers, as well as presenter Amy Blount Lay. Amy Lay led the seminar and explained how to create "sea monsters" out of plastic marine debris, to make a point of how disastrous it is to our Earth's habitats.

Bag it! A film festival

Plastic Pollution Coalition invites you to...

BAG IT! A Film Festival

4-7pm Sunday, August 22, 2010

The UCLA James Bridges Theatre

Featuring:

Bag It!

A documentary by Suzan Bereza

Plastic Bag

An Award-winning short

By Ramin Bahrani

Voiced by Werner Herzog

& PSAs Supporting AB1998

The California Single-Use Bag Reduction Act

The filmmakers, legislators, scientists, and celebrities who are in the know about plastic pollution

BAG IT!

is your life too plastic?

RSVP@plasticpollutioncoalition.org

Directions
The Bridges Theater is located at the Northeastern corner of the UCLA campus. Parking is available in Lot 3. Parking fee is $10. From Hilgard Ave. enter the east side of campus at Wyton Dr. Make and immediate right turn onto Charles E. Young Dr. East and signs will direct you to Parking Structure 3.
From the ground level of Structure 3, enter the underpass (or from the street level cross Charles E. Young Dr. North and proceed down steps) and walk straight alongside Melnitz and Macgowan Halls. Turn left at the plaza and proceed to the courtyard of theaters.

Charitable Donations will be accepted at the event

BAN THE BAG!

Every year Californians are estimated to use 19 billion plastic bags - many of which will end up in our rivers and oceans causing major harm and damage to our precious eco-systems. A ban on plastic bags is one of the biggest single cuts we can make to reduce marine debris pollution.

California Bill, AB 1998 would ban single-use plastic bags in California for good! As senators gather this August to vote we need to make sure we are heard and that this bill passes!

We need YOU to wear a Bag Monster costume on August 12, 2010 @ Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco at our “Don’t Feed the Bag Monster” event. We will provide the

costume, a free reusable bag, snacks and water. Join us as we let the state know that we are fed up with the unnecessary waste of single-use bags!

Single-use bags are easy to spoof since they’re such a bad idea - thus the birth of the Bag Monster costume! Bag Monster costumes are decked out with 500-700 single-use plastic bags, the amount the average American uses in 1 year! The bags are attached to a single jumpsuit using Velcro. Bag Monsters have been known to make appearances at events all over the country but this August 12th 2010 we’re organizing the LARGEST Bag Monster event in history at Ghirardelli Square!

Who: 100 volunteers to wear Bag Monster costumes – that means YOU and all your friends!

What: 100 Bag Monsters gather at Ghirardelli Square in the “Don’t Feed the Bag Monster” event. Lead Bag Monster, Andy Keller, will rally everyone and march towards Maritime National Historic Park.

When: August 12th, 2010 11AM – 2PM ***please arrive @ 10AM to get dressed and collect your free goodies***

Where: Ghirardelli Square, 900 north point Street at the corner of Beach and Larkin. (West of Fisherman’s Wharf) Meet in the dressing room to get your gifts and costume.

Why: To show support of California Bill AB 1998 and the reusable bag movement!

We anticipate this event will draw state-wide attention to AB 1998, just what we need before senators vote – you won’t want to miss this opportunity to make history! If you are able to volunteer please contact us by August 6th 2010!

Organization___Bag Monster March_____________ Contact________Becca Schwalm_____ Phone________(530) 342-4426 x224_____________email____becca@chicobag.com______________

For additional information contact Becca Schwalm /// bagmonster@chicobag.com or (530)342-4426 x224

Zocalo Sustainable Seafood Event

On July 7th at 7:30pm Team Marine attended a sustainable seafood event held by Zocalo at the Skirball Center. Food critic Jonathan Gold, Heal the Bay's president Mark Gold (Jonathan's brother), Providence executive chef Michael Cimarusti, and Santa Monica Seafood's Logan Kock discussed whether seafood will one day become a delicacy due to increasing fishing pressures on some of the world's not only finest fish but also some of the most important fishes to our oceans. It was fascinating how those four experts were able to dissect the topic in both scientific and basic terms so people of all ranges of knowledge on the subject could comprehend the situation we are facing as an ever-increasing fish-eating culture.

(from left to right... Jonathan Gold, Mark Gold, Logan Kock, and Michael Cimarusti)

HELP BAN PLASTIC BAGS IN CALIFORNIA

Come show your support of
banning plastic bags in California by dressing up as a Bag Monster on August
12 @ Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco!

http://bagmonster.blogspot.com/2010/07/we-need-bag-monster-volunteers-join-us.html

4th of July Parade

This 4th of July Team Marine participated in Santa Monica's Annual 4th of July Parade. We were asked by Heal the Bay, the Grand Marshall this year, to march alongside them through the streets of downtown Santa Monica until we reached the beach. It was an awesome experience and an honor to get to help lead the parade with Heal the Bay. Heal the Bay's president, Mark Gold, was there with his whole family and it was great getting a chance to talk to him. Plastic Bag Man made an appearance along with various sea creatures like lobsters and sea jellies. Assemblywoman Julia Brownley also came to support her plastic bag ban and Team Marine got to meet her (some for the second time) and take a picture with her! Overall it was a perfect start to our 4th of July!

Benjamin Kay's award

Guest blogger Kou Collins says...

On June 19th 2010 Team Marine went to the TreePeople headquarters where Team Marine members Kou Collins and Jacob Hassett were present along with assistant coach Renee Klein who watched their head coach Benjamin Kay win an award. This night was filled with awards that different people won. TreePeople's founder Andy Lipkis was in attendance and even gave a brief speech which explained the whole organization. The award Ben Kay won, was presented by Generation Earth, and is a very important award.

Recovering from Summer Fever + Beach Cleanup

A big hello from Team Marine to all of our readers! Sadly we've all been very busy this summer, and unable to blog regularly. We will be updating you all on all of our activities we have already completed this summer, starting with our first beach cleanup.

By invitation of Sara Bayles, Team Marine attended a beach cleanup at Santa Monica's lifeguard tower 26 in honor of International Surfing Day, on June 20th, 2010. Close to 40 others accompanied Team Marine in the cleanup, collecting 71.7 pounds of trash from the seemingly clean Santa Monica Beach spot. All that attended were entered into raffles for surfboard demos, shirts, and other prizes, and were provided with a great breakfast of pastries, bagels, and drinks. Participants also competed for prizes for oddest object collected, heaviest object collected, most trash collected, etc. It seemed that Kou won most of them, collecting the most and finding a candle in the shape of a naked woman which was voted the oddest object of the day. We want to give a big thanks to Sara Bayles and Mike Takahashi for organizing, as well to the sponsors of the cleanup including Surfrider, Arbor, and Aqua Surf School.