A happy ocean is a clean ocean!

Happy Ocean is an interactive website that addresses the effects of plastic pollution on marine animals. The website tells the story of five ocean animal friends who meet for a beach cleanup party. There are several scenes on the beach that tell stories about the experiences of these mascots living with plastic in the ocean. By interacting with the characters and images in each scene, visitors can learn about the impact of plastic pollution and discover ways to help clean up our ocean.

I came up with the concept for Happy Ocean after learning about the overwhelming amount of plastic pollution in our ocean, specifically, the rapidly expanding Great Pacific Garbage Patch. I felt appalled and wanted to do something about it, but I didn’t know where to start; everything seemed so huge and unsolvable. Fear and anxiety-based imagery and messages were not inspiring to me. Instead, all I wanted to do was hide them when they appeared in my social media feeds. I found that I was far more receptive to news articles and movements that spoke of hope instead of doom. Articles and organizations that presented possible solutions to the crisis of plastic pollution actually inspired me to get involved. Happy Ocean was born out of this desire to proactively engage with and explore the urgent issue of plastic pollution through a lens of optimism.

Happy Ocean showcases small puzzles to solve that are meant to engage visitors and hold their attention. There are elements of silliness mixed with facts and information about all the different ways visitors can participate in cleaning up and preserving our ocean, so that together we can all help these marine animals thrive. The project intends to confront and discuss the seriousness of the consequences of plastic pollution in our ocean in an approachable, positive way. The site and story are intended for all ages.

Inspiration

Before I began the process of designing Happy Ocean, I came across three amazing and motivational initiatives on social media: the 2-Minute Beach Clean-Up, 4Ocean, and Ocean Cleanup Project. These organizations and movements influenced my tone for Happy Ocean, as they each provided some sort of productive solution to the problem of plastic pollution in the ocean. They present a range of participation options from small scale local cleanups to international organizations.

The takeaway for me during my research was that no matter what, with a little bit of effort, each of us can find a way to participate in ocean conservation in ways that play to our individual strengths. You don't have to live on the coast to help keep the ocean safe for marine animals; you can help in whatever way works best for you and still make a difference for the better.

Future

In the future, I intend to work on developing a mobile-friendly version of Happy Ocean. This would involve revisioning a lot of the site due to its current landscape-dominant design. Once a responsive/mobile-friendly version is complete, I intend to share the project across social media platforms and reach out to ocean conservation organizations.

I would also love to create different scenes and scenarios within the Happy Ocean world that will change depending on the user’s time zone—morning, afternoon, evening, and nighttime. I have a lot of ideas about other characters to introduce to Happy Ocean, and I’d like to finish up some of the other concepts that I didn’t get to complete during my Capstone semester, as well as add some additional Easter eggs and surprises to the site.

Eventually, the site will also feature a shop that sells Happy Ocean merchandise such as tote bags, t-shirts, felt Happy Ocean mascot toys, and enamel pins. 50% of all profits will be donated to The Ocean Cleanup. There is a fundraiser planned for The Ocean Cleanup through Custom Ink featuring Happy Ocean tote bags. 100% of the proceeds from this fundraiser will be donated to The Ocean Cleanup.

I want to expand on the Happy Ocean theme and create other websites such as Happy Rainforest, Happy Arctic, Happy Antarctic, Happy Desert, etc., that would become a part of network of sites (possibly called Happy Earth or Happy Habitats) dedicated to discussing ecological concerns such as global warming, pollution, endangered species, habitat loss, using the same interactive elements, engaging style, and overall tone as Happy Ocean.

Project Site