Over 8,000 Australian kids have pledged to become Junior Citizens of the Reef and once the tally reaches 10,000 within 12 months these kids will have removed 1.6 million plastic bags and 1 million plastic bottles from Australia’s 4.3 million yearly tally, which if left unchanged which will inevitably leave oceans with more plastic than fish by 2050, in addition to saving 292 million liters of water and reducing fuel consumption which currently sits at 34,170 megaliters per year.
Junior Citizens of the Reef is an ocean conservation program created by Nickelodeon Australia, in partnership with not-for-profit Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef, which encourages kids to pledge their support to protect the Reef and asked to commit to a series of simple everyday actions to reduce their impact. These actions include; using reusable straws, bottles and bags, walking or riding their bikes to school, having a three-minute shower and turning off lights.
Housed on an interactive online learning hub nick.com.au/reefsquad, the conservation program uses iconic TV character SpongeBob SquarePants and his fellow Bikini Bottom friends to take kids on a deep dive into the Great Barrier Reef, using the innate positivity and humour of SpongeBob to turn issues such as climate change and pollution, into relatable and engaging content that captivates and empowers inquisitive young minds.
The concept for the initiative is underpinned by Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef’s existing program, spearheaded by Earth Hour Founder Andy Ridley, along with Nickelodeon’s 2018 global research study, Kids of the World, which identified ‘Protecting your country’s wildlife and nature’ within the top five problems kids would like to fix, with 32% of Australian kids* actively wanting to solve this global problem. Proving a success, Junior Citizens of the Reef, which launched on World Oceans Day, June 8 2019, has received thousands of pledges from kids around Australia, all of whom are passionate about doing their part to protect the Great Barrier Reef and other reefs around the world.
11-year-old Junior Citizen of the Reef ambassador, Rafferty Laight, said: “In less than four months over 8,000 kids, just as passionate as me, have jumped at the chance to protect the Reef by pledging to become Junior Citizens of the Reef. We are so close to reaching 10,000 and, when we do, within a year us kids will have reduced the number of plastic bags used in Australia by 1.6 million and have stopped tens of thousands of plastic bottles from ending up in landfill, or worse, in our oceans.”
“This isn’t a topic reserved only for adults. You need only look at a Greta Thunberg so see the loudest voice of all on the topic of climate change is coming from a 15-year-old girl. Kids want to be involved in these conversations and I personally plan to be loud, about not only the threats the reef, and our world, are facing, but also about how we as kids, and adults, Citizens and Junior Citizens, can make a big difference if we all act together.”
Andy Ridley, Earth Hour founder and CEO of Citizens of the Reef, said: “We are extremely excited to be part of this innovative initiative and working closely with Nickelodeon to educate kids on the importance of ocean conservation as well as introduce them to a whole new world under the sea.” “We have a number of new and exciting projects that will launch over the next 12 months which will be tailored to kids and designed to bring them aboard our global movement to take action for our Reef.”
Marking its 20th anniversary this July, the global SpongeBob SquarePants franchise was originally conceptualised when its creator, the late Stephen Hillenburg, attempted to make his biology classes more interesting by producing an educational aid comic featuring Bob the Sponge who taught kids the importance of ocean conservation. While the franchise has come a long way in the past 20 years, SpongeBob has remained grounded to his ocean conservation heritage.
“SpongeBob SquarePants has been taking kids into the imaginary underwater world of Bikini Bottom for two decades, so it’s a natural fit for him to guide kids through the Great Barrier Reef and how they can help to protect it,” says Ben Cox, General Manager and VP, Nickelodeon ANZ.
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