Meet Dianne McGrath, Take 3’s newest and most adventurous Ambassador

Take 3 for the Sea’s new Ambassador spread the Take 3 message around the world – literally!

We are delighted to introduce Take 3’s newest Ambassador, Dr Dianne McGrath.

Dianne is the type of person who seeks out challenges. Back in 2013 Dianne was selected from over 200,000 applicants for the Mars One project, which planned to establish a colony on Mars by transporting 100 brave souls on a one-way trip to Mars from Earth. Dianne, ever the professional, spent 8 years preparing herself physically and mentally for the journey, before the Mars One project became a victim of COVID, shutting down in 2021.

Despite this disappointment Dianne was not deterred and she began to seek out her next adventure and decided the if should could not leave this planet, then she would circumnavigate it, which led her to join the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, one of the world’s most challenging and exhilarating ocean races.

The epic 11-month journey would see Dianne join the crew of a 21-metre yacht, reaching every continent on earth, with the exception of Antarctica.

With a lifelong passion for promoting environmental sustainability, Dianne, who holds a PhD in Environmental Engineering and Graduate Diplomas in Sustainable Practice and Environmental Management, is keenly aware of the harm our overuse and mismanagement of plastic is doing to our planet.

“About nine billion tonnes of plastic have been produced since the 1950s, with 5-13 million tonnes of it are estimated to end up in the oceans every year. Plastic waste is now found in every region of the world, particularly in the oceans. Our mismanagement of plastic is having impacts on ecosystems, biodiversity, human health, and the climate. We need to protect our oceans to protect our future,” said Dianne.

Dianne is right to be concerned about the impacts of plastics on our planet, with the connection between plastics and climate change only just beginning to be widely understood.

Plastics, which are made from fossil fuels – coal, oil, and gas create greenhouse gas emissions throughout their whole lifecycle, from production to distribution to degeneration. The more plastic we make, the more CO2 is released into the atmosphere and the more we intensify the climate crisis.

The Clipper Race yachts docked at 14 ports around the world and Dianne checked in with Take 3 whenever she was on land. She reported on the incredible encounters she had at sea and the plastic pollution she found as she crossed each ocean.

“We hear about the plastics in our oceans, we hear about how climate change is affecting our oceans, but we aren't always able to personally see it. I want to see it, share that vision and raise awareness of the untold damage that is being done and to encourage people to change their behaviours before it is too late.”

Dianne added, “Whilst raising environmental awareness is a huge part of why I am taking this journey, I also want to share the beauty of our oceans with the rest of the world while I'm doing this race,”

Dianne spread the Take 3 message whenever she was in port.

“The work of Take 3 in tackling pollution is very important so any time I am interviewed by local media during the Clipper Race I will take the opportunity to talk of Take 3’s work, discuss the crisis of plastic pollution in the oceans, and encourage people everywhere to take 3 pieces of rubbish with them every time they leave the beach.”

The Clipper Race yachts left the UK in September 2023, bound first for a port in Europe and then on to South America. They reached the final port back in the UK on 27 July 2024, a journey of over 40,000 nautical miles.

We are very fortunate to have Dianne as a Take 3 Ambassador for the duration of this race. We wish her, and all the Clipper Race crews, safe travels. You can follow Take 3’s social media channels for updates from Dianne as she undertakes her amazing journey.

About Take 3 for the Sea

Take 3 an award-winning environmental organisation dedicated to addressing the crisis of plastic pollution which not only harms marine wildlife but contributes to global warming. Since 2009, Take 3 has developed and delivered education programs and events to schools, universities, surf life saving clubs, businesses, and communities across Australia. Using storytelling techniques and solution-based approaches, we educate, inspire, and motivate people to take action to tackle plastic pollution and rethink their relationship with plastics. Our mission is to influence public opinion to end the over-use and mismanagement of plastic so that it’s no longer socially acceptable for our beaches to be littered, our oceans contaminated, and our climate irrevocably altered.