We have a global plastic problem; there is now more microplastic in the ocean than there are stars in the Milky Way. Facts like these are so vast that they are very hard to comprehend. So let’s break it down; around 8 million pieces of plastic enter our oceans every day – that’s like emptying a rubbish lorry full of plastic into the sea every minute. If we could see this happening with our own eyes maybe we would be doing more about it.

It is quite easy to picture populated areas suffering from the effects of plastic pollution, but what about area less populated by humans? What about arctic beaches that are hardly ever visited by humans? Although we may not be there ourselves evidence of our existence is clear to see. Last year the Narwhal expedition crew found one piece of plastic per meter on the arctic beaches that they visited. This year the Narwhal will return to continue to clean up arctic beaches and conduct critical scientific studies to study the ever worsening effects of plastic pollution on our fragile planet.

Expedition aims:

• Conduct marine litter surveys on remote, previously un-recorded beaches in Svalbard for inclusion in the Marine Conservation Association / OSPAR databases

• Remove marine litter from arctic beaches

• Log marine litter in the open ocean with the University of Georgia Marine Debris Tracker project

• Conduct marine mammal surveying on Svalbard coasts and Barent’s Sea

• Record plankton levels recorded for the University of Plymouth's Secci disk project

• Re-create weather measurements recorded in old whaling ship logs to illustrate climate change on a human scale

• Produce a documentary film of the expedition highlighting the effect that marine pollution is having in the arctic.

• Use photography to share a powerful message of how plastic pollution is affecting wildlife in the Polar Regions

Expedition date: 7th-22nd July 2019

I ask for your support on this important mission, with the expedition and travelling costs. Though I have been working with people with additional needs and working in the outdoors since leaving university, I am very excited to be able to join the crew on the Narwhal and conduct some scientific research which my masters in psychological research methods will have prepared me for.

Get updates leading up to the expedition as well as content when I'm actually there by liking my facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/Carlys-Arctic-Expedition

If you would like to know more, please visit the Narwhal Expeditions website: https://www.narwhalexpeditions.com/research