A Little Bit Of Creativity Goes A Long Way

When it comes to engaging with environmental issues like plastic pollution, for most of us it is fun, creative action and ideas that bring the complex and often dry political stories to life.

As time goes on and we see rates of plastic production and consumption increase, relying solely on corporate and political responses to the plastic crisis is not enough. Research is showing that art and culture are able to empower storytelling beyond science and policy.

Art such as posters, banners, music, storytelling, ‘craftivism’, performance, story-telling, alternative audio tours, to name a few, are some of the amazing examples of how individuals and communities are finding creative ways to take action against plastic that enhance the traditional approaches of protest, petitions and citizen science.

One powerful example of art working with corporate environmental action on plastic has recently surfaced in the form of a giant blue whale in Canary Wharf, London. Designed to act as reminder of the millions of tonnes of plastic waste floating in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the sculpture was designed by Studio KCA with the Hawaii Wildlife Fund. The whale is eleven meters long, its body is made from plastic collected on the beaches of Hawaii, and its base is made of spent coffee grounds from Canary Wharf’s cafes and restaurants. The artwork is creating visibility around the plastic pollution crisis and reminds us of the emotional connection many of us have with our ocean’s sea life.

It’s a tactic used by countless other communities across the UK, and often used as a way to collect plastic as well as make an artistic point. Like ‘Philup the Fish’, a steel fish sculpture that was installed in Torridge. It encourages visitors to put their plastic waste through the fish’s mouth. And then there’s the ‘Basket Shark’, created by Falmouth University and Plastic Free Mylor, made of bamboo and willow, that highlights the dangers of plastic and marine pollution with its sustainable design.

In 2024 Surfers Against Sewage joined ‘Out & Wild Festival’ in Wales, the UK’s biggest festival for lesbian, bi, trans and queer women and those who are non-binary, to connect with supporters and deliver an art workshop focused on protecting the ocean from plastic and sewage pollution. Using collective creativity, festival-goers were encouraged to add to a giant mural by painting images and words to answer the question ‘what does the ocean mean to you?’ The workshop engaged passers-by, created conversations, provided an activity to encourage mindfulness, and promoted the charity’s values and goals.

Creativity runs through every aspect of the Plastic Free Communities campaign. The community in Plastic Free Seaford have celebrated the incredible life and activism of their friend, SAS Regional Rep, and community lead, Claire Sumners, by creating a stunning mermaid bench in her memory. Claire was instrumental in raising awareness and mobilising community action on plastic pollution where she lived. The Plastic Free Community have worked hard to raise funds for the bench so that Claire’s legacy can continue to inspire others to protect the ocean. The group revealed the memorial, designed by sculptor Rich Dean in July this year as part of the SAS People vs Plastic UK protests.

Plastic Free Exmouth have produced fun, eye-catching posters for their regular beach clean events, with the help of creative individuals in their team. The posters appeal to people of all ages and suggest the mindful and social benefits of getting together to clean our environment. Exmouth often see amazing numbers of volunteers at these events. Plastic Free Hitchin have produced colourful, engaging posters for their plastic free Pick’n’nick and Halloween costume swap events. Poster images like these can be printed physically, or shared online to work as banners for social media event pages, to attract new followers and attendees.

Plastic Free Lady Bay celebrated their plastic free award status from Surfers Against Sewage by holding a mosaic celebration event in May this year. The event included a plastic free herbs street stall alongside the group’s community herb garden. The five mosaics depicting herbs and wildlife are the work of artist Jenny Craig who donated them to help celebrate their award. The group gave away herb seedlings in woolly sock plant pots, drinks and cake. The visual creativity helped attract the attention of local newspaper West Bridgford Wire who have promoted their campaign.

Plastic Free Bembridge organised a launch event for their community in June 2024 with the help of their local village hall community ally. The group created engaging activities to inspire conversation and problem solving around plastic pollution. They used info boards to tell the story of plastic and to explain the Plastic Free Community campaign. They ran a quiz on plastic using information from the boards and a drawing activity on marine life. Attendees played ‘guess the number of nurdles in a jar’ with prizes available for the winners. A pile of plastic showed the average plastic waste created by two households in one week. Videos showing the PFC campaign ran on a screen throughout the event, whilst people could take their photo with a Plastic Free picture frame.

In 2024 volunteers from Scottish Plastic Free communities held a Plastic Free Fashion show outside the Scottish Parliament to call on MSPs to act on period plastic, nurdle pollution, single-use plastic bottles, fishing-related debris and e-waste. They made outfits from upcycled waste to raise awareness of the importance of a circular economy.

Creative campaigning has a powerful impact on wider, national campaigning. It’s always been the core of our work here at SAS. In July 2023, as we launched our Brand Audit exposing the top dirty dozen polluters, we created ‘Swimming in Plastic’. Working with our community in Penzance and with the bottle collecting efforts of other communities across Cornwall, we filled the iconic Jubilee Pool in Penzance with the same number of plastic bottles the town would use in just one day. Demonstrating the scale of the crisis and how a Deposit Return Scheme across the UK would prevent billions of plastic bottles entering the environment. The stunt showcased the evidence, and the ways in which grassroots communities are fighting back.

Art projects and creative thinking can only help strengthen our campaigns and is an effective tool as we take on industry and government. There’s huge, untapped potential for science and art to work together. Plastic Free Communities across the UK are demonstrating how this can create engaging events, grow local support, and speak to the hearts of their community. The tangible human stories that capture people’s attention help build an emotional connection with our environment. And inspire action to protect it.

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