In 2025, the UPU international letter writing competition has the theme: “Imagine you are the ocean. Write a letter to someone explaining why and how they should take good care of you”. In English: “Imagine you are the ocean. Write a letter to someone explaining why and how they should take good care of you”.

Below is a sample letter writing for the 54th UPU:

Hello my friend!

I am the ocean, a vital part of our blue planet. I have been around for a long time, covering nearly 70% of the Earth's surface and playing an indispensable role in sustaining life on this planet. You see, I not only help regulate the climate but also create a food source for millions of sea creatures and humans.

But now I am facing serious dangers. So I am writing this letter in the hope that you will protect the life inside me and the precious marine ecosystem.

One of the biggest threats I face is overfishing. As you know, the world consumes about 77 billion kg of seafood every year and this number will continue to increase in the future.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), today more than a third of global fish stocks are overfished, compared to just 10% in the 1970s. This is having dire consequences.

Fish species no longer have enough time to reproduce, leading to rapid decline of fish populations and marine ecosystems. When these fish and marine animals disappear, I cannot maintain the natural balance.

You may have heard that in 1989, the world’s fisheries industry took 90 tons of fish from the ocean. Since then, the yield has been decreasing year by year as fish populations have been depleted. In other words, humans are pushing me to the limit of my tolerance.

Not only that, overfishing also degrades the quality of ocean water, destroying my coral reefs and severely damaging my biodiversity. This imbalance makes me weaker and more vulnerable to natural disasters such as storms, tsunamis and climate change.

But I don’t want you to be afraid. I believe in the power of humanity and the power of change if we all work together. So I ask you to help me reduce overfishing by supporting sustainable fishing methods.

Choose responsibly caught seafood and protect no-fishing zones. Check the origin of your products and choose those that are certified as sustainably caught.

I also hope you spread the word to the younger generation about the importance of the ocean and marine life. Please share and inspire those around you to take initiatives to protect the ocean. Reducing plastic waste, reducing the amount of solid waste dumped into the ocean and using environmentally friendly products will also help me recover faster.

We can't change the past, but I believe that if you act now, I can still be healthy as before. The world is in the hands of humans, so we need to act to protect the things around us.

Thank you for listening to my story. I hope you will be my companion and protect the future of this planet.

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Instructions on how to write and send the 54th UPU letter according to regulations The 54th UPU Letter Writing Competition 2025 has just been launched, with the theme "Imagine you are the ocean. Write a letter to someone, explaining why and how they should take good care of you and protect you".