Prada and UNESCO postpone start of the Sea Beyond Project

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Mar 25, 2020

As a precautionary measure against Covid-19, Prada and UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission have decided to postpone the launch of the Sea Beyond project.

The project, which was designed for students all around the world to help them understand the importance of ocean sustainability, will be postponed to September 2020. 

“With the closing of educational establishments across the world, particularly in the 10 countries participating in the Sea Beyond project, Prada and UNESCO’s IOC are currently unable to effectively deliver the main educational elements of the initiative, particularly with regards to fostering group work among students in participating schools,” Prada and IOC explained in a joint statement.  

UNESCO currently estimates that the outbreak is now impacting over 1.2 billion learners worldwide, from the pre-primary to tertiary level, and including the higher education one. Meanwhile, 72.9 percent of total enrolled learners worldwide are staying away from school due to the Covid-19 crisis.

The partnership was first announced in February and was supposed to be a four-month project, running from February to May 2020. The program was set to launch with a network of secondary schools around the world to promote sustainable consumption practices.

The news follows Prada’s announcement to use its factory in Montone, Perugia, to produce some 80,000 medical overalls and 110,000 masks for healthcare personnel in Italy. 

Moreover, the Milan-based fashion brand said on Monday that it has donated six Intensive Care Units or ICUs in the fight against Covid-19 to three Milanese hospitals: San Raffaele, Sacco, and Vittore Buzzi, which is a children’s hospital.