The NOAA Marine Debris Program and the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation are pleased to announce the 12 recipients of the Ocean Odyssey Fiscal Year 2024 Marine Debris Awards for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice, and Accessibility (DEIJA), totaling over $84,000.
These projects will support initiatives that investigate and prevent the adverse impacts of marine debris in communities that are underserved, underrepresented, or overburdened. The projects will support marine debris prevention, interception, removal, and monitoring and detection activities with work in projects in the State of Sonsorol in the Republic of Palau, American Samoa, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Hawai‘i, Virginia, Massachusetts, New York, California, Texas, and Michigan. Each project will be completed by the end of March 2025.
These award recipients include:
Akiak Native Community (Alaska, $7,500)
Elizabeth River Project (Virginia, $7,493)
Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary (Michigan, $7,500)
Gullah/Geechee Legacy (Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina, $7,500)
Kewalo Marine Laboratory at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (Hawaiʻi and American Samoa, $7,500)
Mystic River Watershed Association (Massachusetts, $5,860)
Native Village of Afognak (Alaska, $6,115)
Research Foundation of CUNY - Queens College (New York, $7,470)
Resilience Education Training and Innovation (RETI) Center LLP (New York, $7,000)
San Diego Audubon Society (California, $5,657)
Sea Turtle, Inc. (Texas, $7,040)
Sonsorol State Government (Republic of Palau, $7,500)
For more information on this year’s funded projects, visit the Marine Debris Program website. For more information on this grant program, please visit the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation website.