We are sailors who love the sea. 

We're a not-for-profit crew of sailors from around the world, on a mission to make every sailor an ocean ambassador.

Whether you race, cruise, charter or just love being on the water, we believe the people who spend the most time at sea are best placed to protect it.

 

Our Story

Clean Sailors was founded in 2020 by sailor and ocean activist Holly Manvell. Hundreds of miles offshore, days from land, Holly Manvell was seeing the most incredible sunrises, sunsets and wildlife of her sailing life. And plastic bottles - so much plastic. It sparked a simple thought.

Holly noticed something simple: sailors already love the sea -iIt's our pastime, our passion and, for many, our profession. So why weren't we leading the way in protecting it?

Often it's because we don't know the real picture, what our impact is, or how easy it can be to sail a bit cleaner.

Clean Sailors started as a way to share exactly that: the science, the stories and the small switches that add up to a cleaner industry and cleaner seas. 

Our aim is to make an ocean ambassador of every sailor on the water.

 

What we do

Inspire: Through the Clean Sailors Podcast, practical sailing guides and the Clean Sailors Code, we help sailors understand their impact and what they can do about it.

Recycle: Our ReSail platform connects old sails and wetsuits with drop-off points and makers around the world, keeping kit out of landfill.

Innovate: From the EcoOptimist, a recyclable Optimist dinghy for young sailors, to Cleaner Marina, and a champion Youth Racing Team, we work with industry partners to build and inspire a cleaner future for boating.

Protect: Through #ProtectOurBeds, we support sailors in mapping sensitive seabeds in boating hotspots around the world. 

 

Why we do it

The sea gives us so much: adventure, freedom, community and the life that thrives beneath our hulls. It's also the greatest source of life on Earth and a vital regulator of our climate.

We want to help it recover and flourish for generations of sailors to come. We aren't much without the sea.

 

Our journey so far

2020: Clean Sailors launches.

2021: ReSail by Clean Sailors pilot launches in South West UK.

2021: We launch the Clean Sailors podcast. 

2022: ReSail by Clean Sailors launches as global platform - we've now over 50 partners in 12 countries.

2022: We launch our Clean Sailors Youth Racing Team - three champion youth sailors competing on the 69f circuit in the name of cleaner seas.

2022: We team up with NL Comp to launch and One Sails to launch the world's first fully-recyclable Optimist dinghy, just to show it can be done - the EcoOpti.

2022: The Clean Sailors Youth Racing Team wins the Barcardi Cup in Miami, Florida. 

2023: The Clean Sailors Youth Racing Team takes Silver at the 69F Youth Foiling Gold Cup in Barcelona.

2024: We launch Season 2 of our Clean Sailors Podcast. 

2025: We team up with Cambridge School of Art to deliver the Sustainable Design and Innovation module for fashion students, using old sails. 

2026: ReSail expands to wetsuits and neoprene donation points, in partnership with Circular Flow. 

2026: Our sail-to-fashion project with Cambridge School of Art returns for a second year. 

2026: Season 3 of our Clean Sailors podcast, coming soon...