Sea Turtle NGO MEDASSET ‘Swears to Care for Clean Seas’

In efforts to safeguard Mediterranean marine and coastal habitats of the sea turtle, non-profit organization MEDASSET (Mediterranean Association to Save the Sea Turtles) is launching its “Clean Seas: Swear to Care” campaign, inviting visitors and residents to respect the environment and take action to keep Greece’s beaches rubbish-free.

The campaign and relevant televised spot to go on the air on Saturday (see below) invites beach-goers to pledge: not to drop litter on the beach or in the sea / not to bury rubbish in the sand so that no one can see it / never to drop cigarette butts on the sand / if I can see litter round my chosen spot on the beach I will collect it and put it in the nearest bin / I’ll put out my cigarette on my eco-ashtray and empty it into a bin / I’ll make sure I always take a rubbish bag with me to the beach / if I find the nearest bin is full, I won’t leave my rubbish on the ground next to it but take it with me until I find one that has space / if I come across litter while I’m swimming I’ll take it out of the water and put it in a bin / when travelling by boat I’ll take care not to leave litter that might be carried into the sea by the wind.

“Our country is surrounded by sea. By protecting the coastal, marine and submarine environment, we are protecting the future of our children. It is, however, also an economic issue because our country relies on the sea and tourism,” said Panos Karvounis, head of the European Commission Representation in Greece.

Since 1988, MEDASSET has been working through scientific research, environmental education, lobbying decision-makers and raising public awareness to protect Mediterranean marine and coastal habitats of the sea turtle.

“Clean Seas: Swear to Care” is organized with the support of the European Commission Representation in Greece, under the auspices of the tourism ministry, the Greek National Tourism Organization, SETE, HATTA, Union of Hellenic Chambers and SEV-Hellenic Federation of Enterprises.

Find more about the campaign on www.katharesthalasses.gr

See MEDASSET’s TV spot (in Greek):