Published on 8th June 2020

4 min read

Emily and her all-female crew were at sea in the South Pacific as part of eXXpedition Round the World when the pandemic was declared.

They navigated closed borders in one of the remotest parts of the planet in order to reach land and return to their homes around the world. The experience motivated Emily to harness the power of technology to scale up action on issues that really matter which is now needed more than ever. Positive and solutions-driven the SHiFT Platform is a fun, interactive, accessible tool for everyone that cares about the health of our ocean. The launch kicks off a Year of Virtual Impact while eXXpedition Round the World is paused in the South Pacific in response to COVID-19.

June 8th 2020, London: Today on World Oceans Day, ocean advocate Emily Penn and global technology leader SAP are calling on everyone to check out the SHiFT Platform. Launching today, the platform scales up support for individuals and businesses to tackle plastic pollution around the world.

The SHiFT Platform uses innovative technology to help users find their role and use their superpower to tackle ocean plastic pollution.

By navigating hundreds of impactful solutions from sea to source, users can find the ones that are best for them to action.

“The more time I spend at sea, the more I realise the solutions to plastic pollution start on land. There’s no silver bullet to solve the problem but there are hundreds of ways to tackle it. A big challenge for many people is knowing where to start” says Emily Penn ocean advocate and eXXpedition Founder.

“That’s why I first developed the SHiFT methodology- a journey of discovery to help people understand the crux of a problem and weigh up where they have the biggest opportunity to make an impact.

For years I’ve been using this methodology in my workshops and sailing expeditions and it’s really effective. Working with individuals, businesses and governments around the world, it’s helped them pinpoint where to take action and inspire others to follow.

But for lasting impact we need scale - to be able to help the tens of thousands of people and businesses that reach out saying “I care, I get it, I want to do something!”. Thanks to our partners at SAP, we’re bringing the SHiFT method to digital life as the SHiFT Platform. Now we’ve got a way to help them … and many more and accelerate the journey towards a healthy ocean.”

On the SHiFT Platform, users can select how, in what aspect of life and where they want to create a shift from sea to source. Users can generate solutions in under a minute, but those looking to explore hundreds of options can have fun experimenting with different filter combinations.

Each solution includes facts to help users better understand the problem itself, as well as the benefits and challenges of implementing those solutions and the impact they can make in doing so. Users can also easily share their actions across social media channels to inspire others to join them in making a difference in their own lives, communities, businesses and wider world.

From small individual changes to large global projects, solution examples range from high-tech to a return to basics. They include making DIY cleaning products, lobbying for more drinking water refill stations in their city, reducing plastic in the supply chain to going entirely packaging free. It also has resources and activities for kids, from competitions to end single-use plastic to lesson plans and activities they can join in on like the Great Nurdle Hunt.

“At a time when we are all thinking more about our role in the world, people are adapting to new circumstances and ways of doing things. Global sustainability challenges need global action and impact is needed at scale,” says Stephen Jamieson, Head of Sustainable Business Innovation, SAP EMEA.

“You need business on board to be able to do that and technology has a huge role in making it happen. Industry and business have an essential part to play in addressing the challenges our ocean faces - the most pressing being how to turn off the tap to plastic pollution. The core feature of the SHiFT Platform, powered by SAP Qualtrics, is helping people navigate through hundreds of solutions to find the one that’s right for them by determining the shift they want to make to reduce plastic pollution in the ocean. It helps them to make data driven decisions, prioritise and act”.

Launching the SHiFT Platform kicks off a Year of Virtual Impact while Emily’s all-female science and sailing research mission eXXpedition Round the World is paused in the South Pacific for 12 months in response to COVID-19.