Ocean Hero Awards 2026

Before you get started here is a reminder of the details required to submit a nomination:

Name of group or individual you are nominating (you can nominate yourself/ your group)
Details of the regular clean-ups/ events undertaken by the nominee
List of any other groups/ organisations the nominee engages with
List of any projects/ campaigns/ initiatives the nominee has taken part in
A high quality photo of the nominee (.jpg format)
Before starting, review the 2026 Award Categories here: Ocean Hero Award Categories

Ocean Hero Awards 2026

Your Information

Your Local Authority(Required)

The local authority where the nominated group /volunteer is primarily based

Your Name(Required)

Name of Group or Individual(Required)

The name of the Clean Coasts group or individual volunteer you are nominating

Name of Group

If nominating an individual volunteer from a group please include the group name below

Your position / relationship to the group(Required)

Eg. Volunteer, chairperson, community member, friend, external etc.

Email(Required)

Enter Email Confirm Email

Phone Number(Required)

The Nominee and Clean Coasts

This information will support the nomination, help us get to know the group / volunteer a bit better and will be used to update our records. Please note, a nominee does not need to be involved with all of the below initiatives to be eligible for an award. Nominees should be involved with Clean Coasts for at least 6 months to be eligible for an award.

Does the nominee hold/participate in a regular clean-up? e.g weekly, monthly, quarterly etc.(Required)

Include regular time / date of clean- up below if applicable or N/A if not relevant.

Name of the Beach(es) or Area(s) where the nominee is active(Required)

This could also be a river, lake or in-land location. N/A if not relevant

Roughly how many people participate in regular group activities (ie. beach cleans etc)?(Required)

Please enter a number from 1 to 500.

Has the nominee participated in any of the below Clean Coasts / An Taisce actions or campaigns?(Required)

Select any/all that apply

The Big Beach Clean

Biodiversity Actions (e.g. Clean Coasts Observers, Explore Your Shore, Species monitoring)

Nature Restoration Actions (i.e. any hands-on action to increase biodiversity in the local area)

Green Coast Award

Clean Coasts Grants

The 2 Minute Beach Clean

Think Before You Flush/Pour

Love Your Coast Photography Competition

National Spring Clean

Climate Action Week

Green Schools

An Taisce Local Associations

Corporate Volunteering / CSRs

Other

None of the above

Include any additional details below

e.g. when did the nominee participate, numbers of volunteers involved or any other interesting details. N/A if not relevant

Does the nominee engage with or work with other groups or public bodies in their area?(Required)

Select all that apply

Other community gorups

Schools

Fishing Communities

Local Authorities

The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS)

Local businesses

NGOs

Other

None of the above

Include any additional details below

e.g. reason for engagement, details about the event or activity, number of volunteers involved, length of relationship or any other interesting details. N/A if not relevant

Awards categories and Nomination

One award can be chosen per nomination. In some cases nominees may also be considered for other awards by the jury. Multiple nomination forms may be submitted.

Ocean Hero Award Selection(Required)

Group of the Year

Leadership Award

Youth Initiative Award

Campaign Ambassador Award

Community Action Award

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Award

Community Champion (Business Award)

Nature Guardian Award

Emerging Group Award

Reason for Nomination(Required)

Any other Comments(Required)

Tell us more about this group or individual. eg. Can you share a particular story that showcases how special they are? Does the group have a very active WhatsApp group or social media presence? Has the individual volunteer inspired others?

Social Media

Where available/public share a link to the nominee's social media or website below.

Please include a high quality photo of the group, individual or action(Required)

If this nominee makes it to the shortlist of the 2026 Ocean Hero Awards, these images will be used in promotional and communications material such as on social media, on the Clean Coasts Website and in the official Ocean Hero Award Ceremony presentation and brochure. Please do not include screenshots. Preferred Format: .jpg

Accepted file types: jpg, jpeg, png, gif.

Upload any supporting documents or additional images here

Any images uploaded must be in .jpg format. To upload multiple items create a folder and compress it as a .zip file.

Max. file size: 64 MB.

Spotlighting the Unsung Heroes

We want to hear about the people who inspire and support you! Is there someone who's not part of your group but gives their time and energy or goes out of their way to support you? We'd like to give them a mention in our roll call and thank them for their contribution. It's nice to be appreciated so let them know what their support means to you. It could be someone who stores your equipment or gives free advice or talks, someone from the council or other agency who helps you get things done or it may be a friend or relative that looks after all your tech\social media\posters or printing. We hope this initiative will inspire more good deeds and show that every contribution can have a big impact.

Your Unsung Heroes

Include their name, role (if applicable) and a few details about what makes them such a hero! If they have a public social media or website share that below too.

Photo of your Unsung Hero

If you have a photo of your Unsung Hero please submit it below - this photo may be used in promotional and communications material such as on social media, on the Clean Coasts Website and in the official Ocean Hero Award Ceremony presentation and brochure. Please do not include screenshots. Preferred Format: .jpg

Accepted file types: jpg, jpeg, png, gif.

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