Ocean Tribute Award, five years on successful course for the seas

With the initiation of the "ocean tribute" award in 2017, the Monegasque Prince Albert II Foundation, the German Ocean Foundation and boot Düsseldorf set themselves a clear goal: To support people, projects or initiatives in their commitment to marine conservation. Since 2018, the €20,000 prize has been awarded annually.  Prominent award winners such as Hamburg sailor and Vendée Globe participant Boris Herrmann, with his team Malizia winner 2019, give the award considerable international significance.

The call for entries for the "ocean tribute" Award 2023 has just started. Applications are invited for initiatives that develop innovative and future-oriented technologies to protect and conserve the oceans, contribute to reducing waste and thus ensure cleaner seas, or promote sustainable management to protect marine and coastal ecosystems. Applications should be submitted to the website with a detailed description no later than August 31, 2022.

The jury of experts from science and research as well as representatives of the foundations and boot Düsseldorf will then evaluate the entries and select five particularly committed projects. The jury places particular emphasis on the practical effectiveness of the project, the involvement of as many people as possible in the initiative, and networking with other marine activists. The five nominees for the final round will be presented on the "ocean tribute" award website and on the boot social media channels from October. The interested public can now vote for their favorite in a "public voting".

Boot Director Petros Michelidakis explains: "The winner of the 'ocean tribute' Award 2023 will be the one who gathers the most votes from the public voting and the expert jury and will not only receive an attractive prize money, but will also be presented in the exclusive setting of the "blue motion night" at boot Düsseldorf in January. Unfortunately, this could not take place live due to the pandemic in the past two years. This makes the public presentation of the award all the more dear to our hearts. It has become a permanent fixture in the ranks of campaigns for marine conservation. And as long as the waters and marine habitats are in danger, we will continue to work for their protection."

The winner of the 2022 "ocean tribute" award is the French company HelioRec, Petros Michelidakis announced in April in a film about the award ceremony. Together with Frank Schweikert, Executive Director of the German Maritime Foundation, he describes why both the jury and the public voted for HelioRec from Nantes: "The French company scores with its environmentally friendly electric charging stations (ECS) for the maritime sector based on floating solar power plants. Unused water is converted into a clean energy source through a floating offshore solar cell system. The main objectives of the project are to save land area in a port area, generate a clean energy source, establish fast charging stations for electric vehicles and electric boats in the port, and realize new digital services for data prediction and optimization. Other concepts of the project are fast charging stations for electric vehicles and electric boats in the port. Another goal is the circular economy approach: recycled plastic is used to make floating systems, reducing system costs and carbon footprint."