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The frame was made of woven plastic, held together with heat-welded tape and steel bolts. The bottles were joined together with an earth- friendly bonding agent the Plastiki team developed using sugar and cashews. Photo credit: Used with permission and copyrighted by “The Plastiki.” The Plastiki is a 60-foot-long (18 meters) oceangoing “one-of-a-kind catamaran” that was made from 12,500 reclaimed plastic bottles. For buoyancy, the bottles were filled with powdered dry ice, and sealed to re-expand with carbon dioxide and thus float. Photo credit: Used with permission and copyrighted by “The Plastiki.” We have all seen the stark warning signs: the world population is increasing, access to fresh water is declining, our oceans are under threat of overfishing and environmental damage. The greatest sources of conflict in the 21st century may well be over water. The concept of “peak water” and running out of the one resource we truly need to survive is daunting. Yet there is good news. At ENGINEERING & HUMANITY WEEK 2013 we will focus on the positive ripple effects people can inspire when confronted with our current challenges. Meet British adventurer and ecologist DAVID DE ROTHSCHILD and tour his one- of-a-kind catamaran, the PLASTIKI, made from 12,500 plastic bottles. David made maritime history in 2010 when he sailed his recycled boat 8,000 miles across the Pacific, put together with an earth-friendly glue his team discovered from sugar and cashews. David is the Engineering & Humanity Week 2013 Visionary Award recipient – his expedition was an engineering first and brought global attention to the South Pacific garbage patch – a swirling mass of plastic trash twice the size of Texas. WATER: Ripple Effects David de Rothschild and skipper Jo Royle celebrate aboard the Plastiki as they arrive into Sydney, Australia.
