The Ocean Cleanup

Hello! We are The Ocean Cleanup. Our planet’s beautiful oceans are home to amazing creatures, from tiny fish to giant whales. But these oceans have a very big problem: they are filled with floating plastic trash. This plastic can hurt animals and damage the environment. Our story began with an idea from our founder, Boyan Slat. He saw how much plastic was in the water and thought that technology could be used to help fix it. He came up with a plan, and that plan grew into our organization. Our main goal is a simple but important one: to clean up the floating plastic from the world's oceans and make them healthy again.

Our first big challenge was figuring out how to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a huge area in the ocean where trash has gathered. To do this, we created a special invention. It is a very long, floating barrier that drifts on the surface of the water. It’s designed to use the power of nature to do its job. The wind pushes the barrier, while the ocean currents and waves push the plastic. Because the barrier moves in a special way, it gathers the plastic together in one place, like a big rake collecting leaves. It can catch tiny pieces and bigger objects. Once the barrier is full, we send out large ships. The crew on these ships carefully collects all the plastic and brings it safely back to land.

As we worked on cleaning the ocean, we learned something very important. Most of the plastic that ends up in the ocean doesn't start there. It begins its journey in rivers. Trash on the street can get washed into a river, and that river acts like a highway, carrying the plastic straight out to the sea. We knew we had to stop the plastic closer to where it came from. That’s why we also work in rivers. We built a machine called the Interceptor. An Interceptor is a solar-powered boat that works automatically. It sits in a river and catches trash as it floats by, before it ever has a chance to reach the ocean. By stopping the flow of new plastic, we can make our ocean cleanup work even more successful.

So, what happens to all that plastic we collect? We believe it should never pollute our planet again. After our ships and Interceptors bring the trash back to land, we sort it and get it ready for a new life. We recycle it! We partner with companies that can take this old plastic and turn it into new, useful products. For instance, we have helped make cool sunglasses from plastic that was once floating in the ocean. Our work is still going on today. Our cleanup systems are in the oceans, and our Interceptors are working in rivers around the world. We are always learning and improving our technology as we work toward our most important goal: a future with clean oceans for everyone to enjoy.