Launched on October 29th, 2021, #TeamSeas, the international collaborative fundraiser project, was set in motion by YouTubers Mr. Beast and Mark Rober to reduce the amount of trash in the ocean by 30,000,000 pounds (13,608,000 kilograms) by the end of 2021. The feat may seem to be impossible, but with the help of both influencer’s supporters as well as the many nonprofit organizations involved, #TeamSeas has raised over $16,300,000 in funding for the project, which translates to the same amount in pounds removed from the oceans.

With #TeamSeas halfway to their goal, it raises many questions such as how the team is going to manage removing 30,000,000 lbs of trash from the oceans with less than a month remaining on the goal’s set donation period. However, the idea isn’t quite to remove all that trash in such a short amount of time. In fact, the #TeamSeas website explicitly states that “The funded cleanup work will begin in 2022 and is scheduled to conclude in three years. We’ll keep the site up and running the whole time…”. Despite the goal’s ‘window’ closing soon, the donation site will not be shut down at the end of 2021.

One of the main contributors, Mr. Beast made a video quickly explaining the project and how it will be executed. He also explained where the money would be going, saying “Half the money we raise is going towards funding volunteer beach cleanups like we did here today all across the world as well as literally fishing trash out of the ocean.”

With the other main contributor, Mark Rober, stating, “[And] the other half will be used for these trash eating robots that pick up trash 24 hours a day 365 days a year from rivers that flow to the ocean.”

A large part of the ocean trash problem is the fact that there’s only so many people who can help, as well as the fact that a big portion of ocean waste comes from trash thrown in rivers. This is where Interceptors come in! Interceptors are devices released by The Ocean Cleanup that sit in rivers and guide trash floating downstream into their conveyor belt, which brings the trash into collection bins where they are then sorted for their proper methods of disposal. These devices are temporary but as the #TeamSeas website says, they’re a wonderful safety net for until it’s possible to completely stop waste from entering rivers.

#TeamSeas is a wonderful initiative that’s main goal is to clean up the oceans. While it may feel as if donating is the only way to support the cause, that would be far from the actual case. This project is supported by the likes of thousands of volunteers who can spend some of their time simply picking up trash from the beaches. Even if dedicating time sounds like too much, just simply picking up that water bottle that’s clearly visible on the next beach visit bring the Earth’s oceans one water bottle closer to being cleaner.