Things you can do to help keep the coastal ocean clean and healthy:

1. Stop littering our planet: Reduce, reuse, and recycle (especially plastics).
2. Find out how and where fish at your local market is caught before you buy.
3. Use unbleached or white toilet paper – colored paper contains dyes that pollute our water systems and, eventually, the ocean.
4. Use phosphate-free washing powder, detergent and other cleaning agents.
5. Don’t take shells or other ‘souvenirs’ from the beach.
6. Pick up any rubbish you see and dispose properly.
7. Avoid using water-polluting household chemicals. Instead, use eco-friendly substitutes such as vinegar (an all-purpose cleaner) and sodium bicarbonate (a bathroom cleaner/mold remover).
8. Report to authorities any illegal dumping or fishing activities, you discover.
9. Read labels on tuna cans; buy only those products that respect marine life.
10. Let your government know how you feel about issues affecting the marine environment: Write local and national officials, or phone the newspapers.
11. Draft your own Ocean Charter to express your commitment to keeping our seas clean and healthy. Get people in your neighborhood to sign your Charter, then present it to your mayor or barangay captain and request that it be displayed prominently in your municipal or barangay hall.
12. Show you care. Wear a blue to show you’re part of “I Love the Ocean” – a movement for sustainable seas.