Who We Are
Great Lakes Great Responsibility is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with a mission to remove and prevent marine debris throughout the Great Lakes watershed through community action, education, and advocacy.
Our Story
Meag Schwartz founded Great Lakes Great Responsibility in 2020 to empower others to take action on behalf of our most precious resource: the fresh water of the Great Lakes. What began as one person’s commitment to the shorelines she grew up on has become a region-wide movement made up of passionate volunteers, board members, partners, and community members united by the same mission and a shared sense of responsibility to protect the environment they call home.
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Our Mission
To remove and prevent marine debris in the Great Lakes watershed through community action and regional advocacy.
Our Vision
To cultivate a culture of individual and corporate responsibility amongst Great Lakes community members, united in their commitment to an environment free from marine debris.
Our Work
We tackle marine debris from every angle - removal, prevention, education, and advocacy - to make our work have a larger impact. We remove marine debris through community cleanups, turn every piece collected into data that drives action, equip our communities with resources and ways to get involved through petitions, public comment, and stewardship, and create programs that have lasting impact at all stages of the plastic lifecycle.
Our Values
Data-Driven Impact
Our work is motivated by historical and emerging data about the quantity and impact of marine debris on ecosystems, communities, and human health; we know that the generation of high-quality quantitative and qualitative data about marine debris removal in the Great Lakes Basin keeps our work salient.
Education Through Action
Our work centers around place-based and experiential learning about Great Lakes issues; we know that community members of all kinds connect and relate to this work most when they are actively participating in impactful actions.
Community Collaboration
As a regional organization, our work requires the meaningful engagement and activation of communities across the Great Lakes Basin; we know that opportunities must be inclusive of and accessible to the diverse communities, entities, and individuals in this region.
Sustaining Legacy
Our work transcends those currently involved in it, as well as the region it takes place in; we know that the impact of our work will be felt for generations to come, both inside and outside of the Great Lakes Basin; preserving and protecting the Great Lakes is the shared responsibility as the inhabitants of this region.
