As we sailed around the world in The Ocean Race, our team wss committed to advancing local initiatives that improve the health of our oceans and address the dynamic environmental challenges facing the sailing and marine communities.
Facilitated by 11th Hour Racing, our Legacy Grantee Program was designed to showcase grassroots projects, organizations, and innovations that highlight local sustainable solutions to global issues, and promote social and environmental solutions as they relate to ocean health initiatives. A total of over half a million euros was distributed to our grantees, all geographically located in areas where we either had a team base or at one of The Ocean Race stopovers. Our investment allowed us to support specific areas of their work, and with each grantee we also held an activation, either prior to the race start or during a stopover, enabling us to spotlight the organization and raise awareness of their work to our international audiences.
We sought projects that aligned with 11th Hour Racing’s programmatic strategy to advance one or more of these focus areas:
- Ocean Literacy & Stewardship – increase the understanding and appreciation of the importance of healthy oceans and waterways to communities through experiential learning, citizen science, and powerful story-telling
- Clean Technologies & Best Practices – advance practices and technologies in coastal communities and the marine industry that reduce waste, prevent plastic pollution, improve water quality, and assess new circular solutions
- Ecosystem Restoration – improve water quality, bolster coastal resilience, and sequester carbon through coastal habitat restoration
