Plastiki, Sailboat made of recycled plastic bottles beats waste!

In a report from Plastiki, Adventure Ecology founder and environmentalist David de Rothschild and his intrepid crew; Jo Royle, David Thomson, Olav Heyerdahl along with National Geographic filmmaker Max Jourdan and Myoo Media’s Vern Moen set sail on the Plastiki, a 60 ft catamaran engineered from approximately 12,500 reclaimed plastic bottles and srPET, a fully recyclable material. An ‘off‐the‐grid’ vessel relying primarily on renewable energy systems, the Plastiki and her crew will journey more than 11,000 nautical miles drawing attention to the health of our oceans, in particular the colossal amounts of plastic debris, by showcasing waste as a resource and demonstrating real world solutions through the design and construction of the Plastiki.

The Plastiki began her adventure nearly four years ago after taking inspiration from a report issued by UNEP called ‘Ecosystems and Biodiversity in Deep Waters and High Seas’ and Thor Heyerdahl’s epic 1947 expedition, The Kon‐Tiki. True to Adventure Ecology’s values, a compelling and pioneering expedition was needed that would not only inform, but would also captivate, activate and educate the world that waste is fundamentally inefficient design. With more efficient design and a smarter understanding of how we use materials, principally plastic, waste can be transformed into a valuable resource, in turn helping to lessen our plastic fingerprints on the world’s oceans. The Plastiki expedition took influence from the principles of 'cradle‐to‐cradle’ design and biomimicry before being realized by a multifaceted team from the fields of marine science, sustainable design, boat building, architecture and material science. The journey to date has generated opportunity for tremendous curiosity, discovery and innovation as well as a platform for discussion, debate and action.

To follow the adventure, feed your curiosity, track the crews’ individual stories, witness the challenges that our oceans and its inhabitants face and learn what you can do for our Planet, please log into the expedition’s online mission control: for regular updates, GPS positioning, crew blogs, photography and mini‐films.