Can social media campaigns save oceans? Likes don’t always lead to action

Growing volumes of marine litter are threatening ecosystems, economies, and coastal communities across the Mediterranean. In Cyprus, where tourism and marine biodiversity are tightly intertwined, this issue has become particularly pressing. Addressing this challenge, new research reveals how community-driven social media campaigns in Cyprus are raising environmental awareness, but also exposing the limits of digital engagement.

Titled “The Impact of Social Media Activities on Marine and Coastal Litter in Cyprus”, and published in Sustainability, the research evaluates how grassroots digital activism, amplified by artificial intelligence tools, can shape public sentiment and encourage pro-environmental behavior.

Conducted by Kemal Emirzade and Mehmet Fatih Huseyinoglu from the University of Kyrenia, the study analyzes social media efforts by three key community organizations - Yesil Baris Hareketi, Teneke Cocuk, and the Spot Turtle Project. Using a mixed-methods approach, the research includes content analysis, sentiment evaluation, AI-based engagement tracking, and qualitative interviews with environmental stakeholders.

Can social media create real environmental impact?

The study finds that social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook have been powerful catalysts for raising awareness about marine litter. Visually compelling posts, such as images of sea turtles entangled in plastic, generated the highest engagement, with average interaction scores exceeding 1,000 likes, comments, and shares per post. Action-oriented content, like clean-up event invitations and youth-led initiatives, also attracted significant user response.

However, the data reveals a consistent drop in engagement following peak moments, such as after clean-up events. This phenomenon, often referred to as “clicktivism,” reflects a broader limitation: digital interactions rarely convert into long-term behavioral change unless supplemented by sustained offline efforts.

Further, engagement patterns showed platform-specific differences. Instagram was the most effective for reaching youth audiences through Reels and Stories. Facebook worked well with older demographics, while Twitter served as a niche platform for institutional dialogues and policy advocacy. Despite their reach, these platforms often fell short in sustaining attention beyond campaign cycles.

How are AI tools enhancing digital advocacy?

Artificial intelligence played a critical role in the research. Sentiment analysis tools were used to evaluate the emotional tone of social media posts. The study found that content triggering strong emotional responses, either outrage at pollution or inspiration from youth-led actions, was most likely to drive public interaction. Posts with negative imagery often elicited comments using terms like “devastating” and “horrible,” while positive content prompted reactions like “hopeful” and “amazing work.”

AI-driven content modeling also enabled the researchers to identify high-performing post types, which can inform future environmental messaging. These included:

• Visual pollution posts (e.g., sea animals impacted by litter)
• Event-based invitations with direct calls to action
• Youth-generated multimedia content
• Clean-up results with visual before-and-after documentation

Beyond message targeting, AI-powered algorithms helped trace behavioral patterns, map user engagement geographically, and assess emotional trends over time. However, the authors caution against over-reliance on algorithmic content curation, citing risks of misinformation amplification and user polarization.

What are the limits of digital-only campaigns?

While social media has proven to be an effective entry point for public engagement, the study underscores that digital platforms alone are not enough. Real-world impact requires a hybrid model that links online awareness with community-rooted action. For instance, an analysis of 16 clean-up events between January 2024 and April 2025 showed that in-person participation often exceeded online interactions, especially when campaigns were coupled with school programs or local partnerships.

The researchers also identified misinformation and fatigue as critical barriers. Community organizers reported that misleading content about marine litter’s origins, government policies, or NGO legitimacy often hampered trust. Moreover, attention decay, driven by fast-paced social media cycles, reduced user engagement within days of campaign peaks.

To mitigate these risks, the study recommends stronger collaboration with educational institutions, local governments, and credible scientific voices. Integrating digital storytelling with fact-based messaging and public reporting on campaign outcomes, such as kilograms of waste collected or number of volunteers mobilized, can help bridge the trust gap.