Hill Robinson and Affinity Group ‘Love the Sea’, after another successful Beach Clean with Beach Buddies on the Isle of Man.

In August, we had our annual summer beach party on the Isle of Man, however this year, our afternoon started with a purpose, a beach clean with Beach Buddies. As proud ambassadors for the local charity, Beach Buddies, we have committed to cleaning our coast of plastic pollutants to protect our natural environment and wildlife.

In collaboration with Hill Robinson and their ‘Love the Sea’ initiative, our shared connection to the yachting sector sparked our partnership with environmental charity, Beach Buddies. As a practice of social responsibility and reflection of our joint passion for the ocean, we complete a beach clean on the Isle of Man every quarter, with the aim to expand this initiative across jurisdictions.

A world-renowned charity that has achieved recognition for setting global standards in beach cleaning, it was founded in 2004 by Bill Dale who began picking up plastic whilst walking his dogs. He quickly discovered the shocking problem that had washed up on the Manx shores, and imminently began cleaning up the beaches on the Isle of Man, which housed thousands of plastic pollutants.

 It didn’t take long for others to become aware and offer their help, which took his simple act of a good deed to a movement involving thousands of people of all ages across the Isle of Man. Bills dedication to tackling plastic pollution over the years and growing following of people committed to his cause is how the charity Beach Buddies formed.  As a protected unesco biosphere, the charity has made a monumental positive impact to the Islands beaches, which have become recognised as some of the cleanest in the world.  

Joined by Beach Buddies founder, Bill Dale, our second beach clean took place around the Islands south coast. Having previously cleaned Castletown beach, this time we took a route around the coast, and covered beaches, harbours, glens and coastal footpaths. In doing this, we not only cleaned the pollutants washing up on the shore, but the plastic that has spread around the coast.

After 2 hours, our bags were full of all sorts of plastic, from tiny micro-plastics that are harming our birds, cigarette butts, food and cosmetic plastic packaging and lots more. It didn’t take long to notice, within a short amount of time, the environmental issues that need our attention.

A positive is our team spends the afternoon together in the outdoors, appreciating the beautiful natural environment on our doorstep and making a significant difference to protect it by not only working together and taking action, but shining a light on the problem to inspire others to do the same.

After our beach clean, we spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying ourselves at our summer beach party, with thanks to Foraging Vintners, who hosted the event at their local bar and distillery which is located in most stunning setting, Port Erin beach. A way to support our hospitality business on the Isle of Man, we enjoyed locally made drinks and food, and a fantastic graze board from Food for your Mood. Our teams had such a fun and rewarding afternoon in the sunshine.

We want to express our gratitude to Bill for the incredible efforts he has made in tackling plastic pollution on the Isle of Man, and we are exciting journey we have embarked on with him in taking this movement across the world.

Take a look at the day’s highlights below;