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Annual Summit New York 2026

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The Typhoon Project — Fighting Plastic in Greece, One Coast at a Time

Energy, Environment, & Transition

Evi Lazou-Laskaridis

Session Summary

Important
Quotations

"The ocean produces more than 50% of the oxygen we breathe. Think about it. Every second breath we take comes from the ocean."

Evi Lazou-Laskaridis

Key
Takeaways

Ocean’s Critical Importance: The ocean produces over 50% of the oxygen we breathe, regulates the climate, provides primary protein for billions, and sustains the global economy, yet only 8.4% is protected, with under 3% effectively managed, revealing a dire lack of global action.

Scale and Impact of Marine Pollution: Most ocean pollution originates on land, primarily from plastics that degrade into microplastics now found in our air, food, water, and bodies; land-based waste far surpasses coastal pollution, as shown by the Cyclone project removing 1.5 times more litter in 18 months than six years of coastal cleanup by the Typhoon vessel.

Proven Effectiveness of Systematic Action: The Typhoon vessel’s 4,300+ cleanups and 900 metric tons of litter removed demonstrate that sustained, data-driven interventions can achieve 80% improvement upon revisits, underscoring the importance of continuous monitoring and data collection.

Collaborative Approach is Essential: Combating marine pollution demands unified action across governments, academia, private sector, nonprofits, and individuals, community involvement through schools, local clubs, and volunteers is key to amplifying and sustaining impact.

Action
Items

For Organizations and Governments: Establish advanced monitoring programs using ROVs, drones, and AI to map pollution; collect comprehensive data to understand sources and volumes across land and sea; and form multi-stakeholder partnerships uniting public, private, academic, and civil society sectors for coordinated global action.

For Businesses: Prioritize tackling land-based pollution, the main source of marine debris, and invest in sustained, long-term strategies that deliver measurable environmental improvements rather than isolated cleanup efforts.

For Communities and Individuals: Participate actively in local cleanups and environmental groups, make sustainable daily choices such as avoiding single-use plastics, and raise public awareness to advocate for policies that protect the ocean.

For the Global Community: Expand and replicate proven models like The Typhoon Project in other marine regions, and embrace shared responsibility, recognizing that while everyone contributes to the problem, everyone also holds the power to be part of the solution.