Kids Clean Up at Inventive Regatta

Newport, RI (August 1, 2017) – Sailors for the Sea announced today that the Secor Volvo Fishers Island Sound Race is the first youth regatta in the world to achieve Platinum Level Clean Regatta Certification.

The Clean Regatta’s program is the world’s only sustainability certification system for water-based events. The Platinum Level Certification has only been achieved by a handful of events including the 34th America’s Cup, The 2015 Volvo Ocean Race Newport Stopover, and The Vineyard Cup.

In just its third year, the 20 mile race for Club 420 sailors between the ages of 12 and 18 offers a unique format that emphasizes skills such as navigation and tidal tactics not found on the standard windward-leeward course. Beginning on July 13 at the Niantic Bay Yacht Club (Niantic, CT), the multi-stage contest took the fleet to the Fishers Island Yacht Club (Fishers Island, NY) where they set up camp for the night, heading up the river the next day for an epic finish at the Mystic River Shipyard (Mystic, CT).

“We learned so much by implementing all of the best practices in the Clean Regattas program,” said the regatta sustainability lead, Julia Cronin. “When we did the beach clean on a 2-mile stretch of Fisher’s Island the kids were amazed at the kind of trash they picked up – everything from bottle caps and balloons to golf balls to grill covers. The amount and variety of trash was incredible!”

In order to achieve Platinum Level Certification, the event achieved 70 of 75 sustainability indicators. Highlights included eliminating single-use water bottles, composting, recycling, carbon offsetting, and hosting a beach cleanup.

“We were thrilled to work with such dedicated group of parents and kids to achieve platinum level certification,” said R. Mark Davis, President of Sailors for the Sea. “These youths are the future guardians of the ocean and their current understanding of ocean health issues is impressive.”

Since its inception in 2006, the Clean Regattas program has already been used by 1,100 events, reaching over 400,000 sailors in 32 states and 31 countries and territories. The Clean Regattas program is implemented on both marine and freshwater ecosystems, and has been used by sailing, paddle boarding, rowing, and even solar powered motorboat regattas.

About Clean Regattas
Sailors for the Sea’s Clean Regattas program is the only sustainability certification for water- based events. It is a hybrid model of sustainability based on the ISO 20121 standard for Event Sustainability Management; the ISO 14000 standard for Environmental Management; and the Global Reporting Index (GRI) Event Organizers Sustainability Guidelines. Clean Regattas is a voluntary certification program comprised of 25 Best Practices. Certifications are available at the Participant, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum levels.

About Sailors for the Sea
Sailors for the Sea is the world’s only ocean conservation organization that engages, educates, inspires and activates the sailing and boating community toward healing the ocean. Its programs offer boaters tangible opportunities to create a legacy and make a difference on their local waters. Since its start in 2004, Sailors for the Sea has worked toward building a community of ocean stewards by offering tools, education and inspiration so that sailors may become change agents, and harness the power of their passion to heal the ocean. Sailors for the Sea is headquartered in Newport, Rhode Island and has three affiliates in Japan, Portugal and Chile. www.sailorsforthesea.org

Source: Hilary Kotoun