Perhaps one of the newest modern trends in businesses of our day and age is the reduction of plastic in an effort to keep our oceans clean and the creatures that inhabit it thriving. Many companies have been changing there products to more biodegradable, eco-friendly materials and resources to keep the environment clean and help the epidemic of ocean trash that our seas are currently facing. While these businesses are helping keep our oceans clean in the long run, it doesn’t help the trash that is already there. According to National Geographic there is 5.25 trillion pieces of trash floating around the oceans which they estimated comes in at about 14 billion pounds. In addition, those stats don’t include the beaches and shores around the world that are covered in garbage and waste.
Que the entrance of Alex Schulze and Andrew Cooper. These two men were on a surfing trip in Bali, Indonesia when they decided they have had enough of the trash. Both men were born in Florida and were licensed captains as teenagers. They had spent there whole lives on the water and it was always something they deeply cared about. These two men founded the company 4Ocean with a mission of cleaning the waste that is polluting and corrupting the seas across the world. They knew it would be a massive undertaking but that didn’t slow them down in the slightest. The two men from Florida started there first operations center in Boca Raton, Florida and started simply with volunteers who shared their same love for the ocean. Today they have grown too six bases of operations that span the globe: three reside in their home of Florida, one in Texas, one in Indonesia, and one in Haiti. They have also amassed a fleet of ships that are geared up to remove the mass amounts of trash. 4Ocean is still largely volunteer based but they have spread their mission far and wide and have many hands and minds working to fix the problem.
How is this all funded? A great question that Alex and Andrew have already thought of. All of the trash that 4Ocean extracts from the sea is turned into 4Ocean Bracelets. The bracelets are then sold by 4Ocean on their website for $20. The promise of the business is that for every dollar you spend at 4Ocean is a pound of trash that is being removed. So while $20 for a bracelet seems expensive, your paying for a snazzy wrist decoration as well as a cleaner ocean. The boys turned their passion into a both a business and a movement and because of it our oceans are becoming bluer and bluer by the day.
It seems like many companies and organizations are focused on keeping trash and plastic out of the water but not many are focused on cleaning up what is already in the water. From the sounds of it, 4Ocean has found a successful way to clean up the trash that is already in the water. They also are not just asking for donations, they have made a tangible product (the bracelets) as a way for people to “see” how their money is being used.
Turning trash into money is brilliant, especially trash that comes from the oceans. In capitalizing on the general public’s concern for the general health and well being of marine life, namely turtles, Schulze and Cooper have really struck a gold mine. Not to mention, that people seen wearing these bracelets will be automatically identified as people who support the environment. This is the kind of thing people want for themselves. Not only are they helping the environment, but people visibly see that they are helping.