As a company, we are raising awareness and money for charities whose causes we believe in. Earlier this year we supported WWF, WIRES and the Australian Red Cross in dealing with the consequences of the devastating bushfires in Australia. This time, we’ve chosen to support The Ocean Cleanup, a non-profit organization that works tirelessly to develop technologies to rid the oceans of harmful plastic.
The problem with our oceans
There are currently five trillion pieces of plastic littered in our oceans, which have resulted in an accumulation of huge garbage patches. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the largest of the five, covering a shocking 1.6 million square kilometers – that’s over twice the size of Texas! Researchers from the Ocean Cleanup foundation have found that the amount of plastic is increasing exponentially and there may even be more than 16 times as much in this vortex than studies have estimated. If left, the plastic will have huge consequences for our ecosystems, health, and economies.
The Ocean Cleanup
The Ocean Cleanup is a Dutch organization founded by Boyan Slat, a young entrepreneur who conducted original research into the scale of the problem and launched an inspiring effort to fix it. Using conventional methods – such as vessels and nets – would not only take thousands of years but would cost tens of billions of dollars to execute. Instead the foundation has proposed a passive system which could remove 50% of the patch in just five years, and at a fraction of the cost.
How it works
The foundation has developed technology designed to concentrate the plastic by capturing it in a huge floater first and allowing the natural force of the current to trap it in manageable chunks so that it can be more easily extracted. With this system, they estimate that they can remove 90% of the patch by 2040. And with the support of individuals and companies joining the mission they can scale up their system even further.
Taking ocean cleaning into our own hands
Supporting causes that make valuable contributions to protecting the world we live in is an important part of the 360 Digital Starters mission. In order to fund the development of technology and help rid the world’s ocean of plastic, we have come up with a sustainable way to raise awareness and work together with our readers to raise much needed money for the Ocean Cleanup. For every person who completes our quick and fun 10-question challenge, we will donate money to the foundation.
How you can get involved
By answering a few quick questions, you can make a real difference! It’s that simple – you play, we pay! Head over to the quiz today and don’t forget to share with your friends and network. The more people we can get involved, the more money we can raise and donate toward cleaning our oceans.
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