Headed up by Olympic sailor Yago Lange, our program in Argentina is tackling plastic pollution in both urban areas and some the country’s most remote and beautiful regions – including a collaborative cleanup on the border with Brazil. With over 3,000 miles of coastline stretching down to Patagonia, and two majors rivers joining in the world’s only river-to-river delta near Buenos Aires, there’s a lot to cover.
“We’ve had the opportunity to organize impactful cleanups with a remarkably strong network of volunteers. The movement here is growing, and all of us have a role to play. We can all be a part of the solution.”
Yago Lange – Parley Argentina
CITY, RIVER and coastal cleanups
From urban Buenos Aires to remote parts of Patagonia, our program in Argentina focuses on ambitious cleanups, education programs and complex expeditions within this beautiful country to harness the power of sport and adventure to inspire a mass audience.
A series of expeditions in 2022 saw the team visiting Península Valdés to uncover massive levels of plastic pollution in an elephant seal habitat and begin the removal process. At the other extreme, a crew of 20 dedicated volunteers pitched in to clean up a highly polluted creek in the Tigre area of Buenos Aires. Using a canoe, silo bags, rubber boots and a ton of energy, our volunteers and staff collected 660lbs of plastic from this fragile wetland.
”The river was super polluted, especially from plastic bottles,” explains Yago. “But there was amazing energy from our small team of volunteers and even some tears after we finished. It was pretty emotional, with everyone sharing their experience and ideas to create change against plastic pollution.”
Misiones collaboration
Iguazu National Park lies on the border of Argentina and Brazil, surrounded by rich, biodiverse rainforest and home to hundreds of huge waterfalls. Parley teams from Brazil and Argentina met up in the region to host cleanups, visit local communities and explore an agroforestry project run by Fundacion Agroecologica Iguazu.
PATAGONIA EXPEDITIONS
Located in the remote south of Argentina and Chile, Patagonia remains one of the world’s last great wildernesses – but there is no ‘away’ and even this vital region is affected by marine plastic pollution. As Yago explains, “We spent two months around Patagonia doing research about plastic pollution and the situation there. We’ve removed 600 fishing boxes from the Puerto Madryn shore, the same bay where whales go during the winter season, and more recently cleaned up fishing debris in Península Valdés and Isla Tovita.”
Education
Since launching their program in 2019, Parley Argentina has carried out over 40 educational events, reaching over 10,000 total participants on and offline. One early highlight was a huge clean up with 400 students, who helped remove over 3306 lbs of debris in San Isidro. You can read more in this article in Argentinian newspaper, La Nación.
As Yago explains: “Simple actions can make a big impact. Always during talks I try to show how our actions can make a positive impact. For example – 50 kids during five school days using one plastic bottle day equals 250 bottles a week or 1000 monthly. If each student used their reusable bottle, their grade could save 12,000 plastic bottles a year!”
SUPPORT OUR WORK IN ARGENTINA
Your support helps us tackle plastic pollution and other threats facing the oceans. All donations go directly to our global teams, helping to fund cleanups, education and infrastructure projects.
Thank You to ALL our Collaborators IN ARGENTINA
Municipio de San Isidro
Colegio Labarden
Club Náutico de San Isidro
Unplastify
Bahia Bustamante
Fundacion Agroecologica Iguzu
Marina Portuguesa
Club Nautico Quilmes
GEA
Club Nautico San Fernando
Las Marinas Muelles
Guayakí
BlueSea Films
Marko Magister
Big Air Factory
PARLEY Argentina 🇦🇷
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Parley’s global network works to protect marine environments from plastic pollution and other threats. Through collaborative cleanups with local businesses and organizations, our teams and volunteers intercept plastic waste from beaches, remote islands, rivers, mangroves and coastal communities. Each country team shares our vision for healthier oceans globally, and works locally to champion the Parley AIR Strategy.
Since the inception of Parley for the Oceans, we’ve been able to intercept over 8.1 million kg of debris from the environment and coastal communities across the globe with the help of over 574,000 volunteers. We’ve also launched an extensive educational program, both virtual and physical. Our global cleanups and educational initiatives have reached over 1 million participants across 57 different countries and counting.