From June to August 2025, Lake Health and Wellbeing, Blue Conscience and the Nevis Historical and Conservation Society implemented a new campaign, Sip Sustainably. This initiative aimed to raise awareness of the harmful effects of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) on both the public’s health and the marine ecosystem.
Timed to coincide with World Environment Day (June 5) and World Oceans Day (June 8), the campaign sought to inspire healthier and more environmentally conscious beverage choices.
Through this campaign, the three NGOs addressed two urgent challenges facing the Caribbean: a growing public health crisis and escalating environmental degradation.
From a health perspective, SSBs are high in added sugars and are associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In St. Kitts and Nevis, NCDs are the leading cause of death, responsible for 77% of all fatalities.
From an environmental standpoint, SSBs are commonly sold in single-use plastic bottles that significantly contribute to marine pollution
The Caribbean Sea has been ranked the second most plastic-contaminated sea in the world, and plastic beverage bottles are the most collected item during coastal clean-ups in St Kitts and Nevis, according to the Ocean Conservancy’s 2022 International Coastal Cleanup Report. These bottles are a danger to our marine ecosystems because they:
- Harm marine wildlife by being mistaken for food, causing internal injuries or death, and leaching toxic chemicals into the ocean.
- Destroy habitats, especially coral reefs and other sensitive marine environments.
- Contribute to microplastic pollution, which affects both marine life and human health as these particles make their way into the seafood we consume.
Through this campaign, we encouraged the public to “Sip Sustainably” by:
- Replacing sugary drinks with water.
- Using reusable water bottles to reduce plastic waste.
We also called on policymakers to adopt evidence-based policies that reduce the public’s consumption of SSBs and reduce the plastic waste they generate. These include:
- Implementing SSB and plastic taxes.
- Removing SSBs from schools, hospitals, and government buildings and replacing them with drinking water.
- Strengthening and enforcing waste management and coastal protection laws.
Campaign Objectives
Specifically, the Sip Sustainably campaign had the following objectives.
- Increase public awareness of the health and environmental harms caused by SSBs
- Promote a shift toward drinking water from reusable bottles
- Encourage both a reduction in SSB consumption and recycling of plastic beverage bottles.
- Advocate for policy change to reduce the availability of SSBs and limit plastic pollution.
We hope that by achieving these objectives, we can inspire a sense of personal and collective responsibility, motivating individuals and communities across St. Kitts and Nevis to take meaningful action in support of their health and the environment.
The target audiences for this campaign were:
- The general public of St. Kitts and Nevis.
- Policymakers and government agencies
Campaign Activities
1. Beach Clean-Ups
We hosted five one-hour beach clean-ups: three in Lime Kiln Bay, St. Kitts, and two at the Charlestown Waterfront, Nevis.
During these activities, volunteers collected plastic waste and recorded data on plastic bottle pollution. All materials, water, and refreshments were provided, and around 10 volunteers attended each clean-up activity.
The table below summarises the data from our beach clean-up events and highlights the environmental impact of our beverage choices, specifically, the significant amount of plastic waste that ends up on our beaches.
It is important to note that these clean-ups were just one hour in duration, and there was scope to collect significantly more waste.
Location and Date of Beach Clean-up | Weight of Waste Collected (Pounds) | Number of Plastic Beverage Bottles Collected |
St Kitts (10th August) | 114 | 285 |
Nevis (19th July) | No data | No data |
St. Kitts (13th July) | 228 | 287 |
Nevis (7th June) | 87 | 313 |
St. Kitts (8th June) | 70 | 360 |
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Total | 499 | 1,245 |
2. Panel Discussion
On 14th August, we hosted a panel discussion at the Malcolm Guishard Recreational Park in Nevis. This event was a public dialogue event featuring health professionals, environmental experts, and advocates. This event was designed to build awareness and drive policy discussions around SSBs and plastic waste. This was an engaging and insightful conversation that brought together diverse perspectives. Panellists included:
- Jennifer Meranto, Founder, Adopt-a-Coastline
- Alessandra Polo – Founder & Director, Blue Conscience
- James Hospedales – Founder, EarthMedic & EarthNurse Foundation for Planetary Health
- Hadassah Willett-Sargeant – NCD Focal Point, Health Promotion Unit Nevis
- Sherverne Gardiner – Environmental Officer, Department of Environment St. Kitts
- Terysia Herbert – Executive Director, Nevis Historical and Conservation Society
3. Social Media Campaign
Our social media campaign started in June and ran until August. It highlighted data, raised awareness, advocated for policies, spotlighted community action, and shared tips on how the public can sip sustainably.
4. Visit to the St. Kitts Recycling Facility
In August, project partners of the Sip Sustainably campaign had the opportunity to tour the St. Kitts Recycling Facility. This was an eye-opening and informative experience and provided a very impactful visualisation of the amount of plastic waste generated by plastic beverage bottles. During this visit, we learnt that over 500,000 pounds of plastic bottle waste have been collected over the last few years in St. Kitts. This visit was a powerful reminder of the urgent action needed to reduce plastic waste through effective policies and through the choices we all make every day.
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Conclusion
The Sip Sustainably campaign successfully raised awareness of the dual threats posed by sugar-sweetened beverages: their harmful effects on public health and their contribution to plastic pollution in marine ecosystems. Through community clean-ups, a panel discussion, social media engagement, and a visit to the recycling facility, the campaign provided both education and practical opportunities for action. These efforts helped to highlight the important role that individual choices, combined with collective action, can play in addressing health and environmental challenges.
Equally, the campaign reinforced the need for policy-level interventions to complement public awareness. Measures such as implementing SSB and plastic taxes, strengthening waste management, and promoting healthy, environmentally-friendly beverage environments in schools and public institutions are vital for long-term change. As the campaign concludes, it is clear that protecting health and safeguarding the environment are interconnected goals, requiring continued collaboration between the public, civil society, and policymakers.
Thank You
We would like to thank our funders and in-kind donors: Bloomberg Philanthropies, the University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Recycle St. Kitts and Nevis, Recycle Nevis and Nelson Spring Water.
We would also like to thank all our participants and supporters, including the Ministry of Health in both St. Kitts and Nevis, the Taiwan ICDF, the Ministry of Environment, the St. Kitts Recycling Facility, Adopt-a-Coastline and EarthMedic & EarthNurse Foundation for Planetary Health.
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