Plastic Pirates unstoppable: Romania has officially joined the Plastic Pirates initiative – a warm welcome to our newest member! The team of UBB Cluj serves as the main contact point for Romanian schools and youth groups aiming to launch a Plastic Pirates sampling. Starting in April 2025, students from Cluj-Napoca collect scientific data at local rivers, making a valuable contribution to the growing European database on plastic pollution.

On April 8 and 9, the Plastic Pirates crew gathered in Brussels for their – at least for now – final General Assembly, as the Horizon Europe project “Plastic Pirates – Go Europe!” officially ends in May 2025. At the heart of the discussions was the path ahead for the initiative and the vision of a future Plastic Pirates network. The Plastic Pirates will continue to combat plastic pollution worldwide together with you!

Our brand-new explainer video is here! Discover everything you need to know about conducting a Plastic Pirates sampling—step by step. From the research questions to carrying out the different group tasks and preparing all materials, this video covers it all. Whether you are a teacher or student getting prepared to conduct a Plastic Pirates sampling or you are just curious to learn more about the project – watch now and get all your questions answered! The video is available in multiple languages.

The REMEDIES program has just launched a new “Related Projects” page on their website. Guess who’s on board? Yes, it’s the Plastic Pirates! Find out more about us and other EU Mission Ocean initiatives and projects related to the REMEDIES program.

Starting off in Germany in 2016, the Plastic Pirates initiative has successfully expanded to 14 countries all over Europe. Do you want to know more about the secret behind this success story? We’ll share 12 key lessons in our “Lessons learned from upscaling a Citizen Science initiative across Europe”. Don’t miss it!

The Plastic Pirates crew was thrilled to be part of the European Ocean Days, presenting and discussing the outcomes of the initiative with the audience. Special thanks to our young Ambassador Bendy from Hungary, for representing the Plastic Pirates live on stage and sharing his inspiring journey in the fight against Plastic Pollution. Find out more on our LinkedIn Channel.