As part of my mission to have a positive impact on the ocean through my business, I'm recording the steps I take to give back here. Read on for my actions from April 2025 to March 2026:
Last updated 7 Sept
Deleting emails
I tried to keep my digital carbon footprint down by permanently deleting emails & clearing out my Google Drive on a regular basis
✉️ ~700 emails deleted in April
✉️ 1,050 emails deleted in May
✉️ 2,960 emails deleted in June
✉️ 1,642 emails deleted in June
✉️ 589 emails deleted in August
✉️ 539 emails deleted in September
Donating to Project Seagrass
My current chosen charity is Project Seagrass. I make regular donations via Work for Good to support their seagrass planting efforts
🌿 Funded around 207 seagrass seeds in April
🌿 Funded around 140 seagrass seeds in May
🌿 Funded around 217 seagrass seeds in June
🌿 Funded around 200 seagrass seeds in July
🌿 Funded around 103 seagrass seeds in August
Other donations
Sometimes I make ad hoc donations to other charities. This year that included:
💸£20 to Prostate Cancer UK in July
Planting trees through Treeapp
Each month, I plant some trees (for free) through Treeapp
🌴 Planted 32 trees in April
🌴 Planted 36 trees in May
🌴 Planted 34 trees in June
🌴 Planted 33 trees in July
Walrus from Space
To help scientific research from my laptop, I try to spend time WWF identify walrus from space as a citizen scientist (don't forget, you can help too! Just have a go online)
🛰️ TBC - I'm waiting for the next 'game' to become available!
Sharing my expertise
As a way of giving back, I offer 1-2-1 sessions to give advice to early career writers and people wanting to switch to conservation copywriting. These are capped at one per month (as I was starting to get inundated with more requests than I could manage).
If you book one of these slots with me, please check out the tips I've shared on my blog and the audio posts I've recorded first as these may answer your questions.
📞 In May, I gave some tips to an environmental educator who wants to get into writing
📞 In June, I had a slot booked for a student who wanted advice. Unfortunately, they stood me up - wasting my time and taking the slot from someone who might have valued it
📞 In July, I spoke with a career switcher wanting to get into marine-related marketing
📞 Also in July (tech glitch with my calendar - these sessions are capped at one per month), I booked a call with a journalist hoping to improve their skills and find their dream job
The Great Eggcase Hunt
When I find mermaid's purses on the beach, I submit them to The Shark Trust's Great Eggcase Hunt
👛 Found several bunches of cuttlefish eggs in August and moved them back to the tide pool to (hopefully) stop them drying out on the sand
WeWard
I use WeWard (referral code: MELL-J7s3F) to convert my steps into points and donate these to charities
👟 Donated 500 ‘Wards’ (aka £2.50) generated by my steps to Care to support female entrepreneurs around the world in May
👟 Donated 500 ‘Wards’ (aka £2.50) generated by my steps to Care to support female entrepreneurs around the world in August
Blood donation
Every few months, I try to take time out of work to try to donate blood
💉 Made a blood donation in May
Land watch
Some more citizen science. I have now completed my land watch training course with Sussex Dolphin Project. I'm going to try to get down to the seafront to do some 'land watching' as a volunteer citizen science soon
🐬 Completed my Land Watch Course in July
