MILAN — The Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli sailing team is giving back to the sea.
The sailing team of Prada’s chief executive officer Patrizio Bertelli has forged a three-year partnership with Ogyre, a global platform of fishermen collecting litter off the seas.
Luna Rossa has pledged to clean up the seas of 6 tons of litter and plastics, all the while raising awareness on and taking concrete actions aimed at protecting the marine ecosystems. As part of the deal, Ogyre was named Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli’s official sustainability partner.
Touting the partnership as a new step towards eco-friendly practices, Max Sirena, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli’s skipper and team director said: “The sea is our home and every day we are committed to respecting and protecting it, not only by activating sustainability projects like this one, but also with investments to improve our internal practices, with the use of more sustainable fibers for technical clothing and the introduction of alternative solutions to single-use plastics.”
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In 2019 the Luna Rossa sailing team said it was switching from synthetic fabrics to wool as part of a partnership with The Woolmark Co.
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“Our commitment to the environment is strengthened by the individual attitude of all team members, united by a genuine and passionate bond with the sea. We hope that the partnership between Luna Rossa and Ogyre can lead to new ventures that can inspire and involve the new generations as well,” he added.
The Luna Rossa and Ogyre initiative can be joined by other players offering support to one of the 80 fishing boats located in Italy, Brazil and Indonesia and part of the Ogyre’s network, thus adding on to the amount of waste Luna Rossa alone will help collect.
“This is a virtuous model tested for the first time in Scandinavian countries, which aims to clean the seas of plastic thanks to fishermen who, in fact, collect marine litter during normal fishing activities,” explained Antonio Augeri, cofounder of Ogyre alongside Andrea Faldella.
Ogyre asks fishermen in its network to collect marine litter and bring it ashore in exchange for an economic compensation that benefits the local communities. Monthly waste of 10,000 kilograms is disposed with help from local partners and partly recycled.
The Luna Rossa team was established in 1997 by Bertelli, an avid sailor, with the original name of “Prada Challenge for the America’s Cup 2000.” The team won the Louis Vuitton Cup in 2000, with a record of 38 victories over 49 races. It also competed in 2003 and in 2007, when it reached the Louis Vuitton Cup final.
In 2015, Luna Rossa withdrew from the competition in disagreement over the overturning of rules unanimously adopted throughout the previous year by the Oracle Team of the U.S.
In 2017 Bertelli announced that his sailing boat would return to the sea, saying “yes” to another America’s Cup, held last year. After 10 hard-fought regattas, contender Emirates Team New Zealand succeeded in defending the 36th America’s Cup with a 7-to-3 victory over Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli wrecking the latter’s ambitions to take the trophy home.
Bertelli has already confirmed his intention to participate in the next America’s Cup.