Junk Raft author to speak about marine plastic pollution
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Marcus Eriksen
Marcus Eriksen, a leading researcher in documenting marine plastic pollution around the world, will be featured at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa’s Better Tomorrow Speaker Series. The Junk Raft talk, film screening and book signing by Eriksen, co-founder of 5Gyres.org, will be at The Royal Hawaiian Hotel’s Monarch Ballroom on Wednesday, August 29, at 7:30 p.m.
Marking the 10-year anniversary of the Junk Raft’s landing in Hawaiʻi, Eriksen’s book and documentary captures his 88 days at sea with co-navigator Joel Paschal, as they sailed from California to Hawai‘i on a raft made of 15,000 plastic bottles. The purpose of the 2,600-mile voyage was to build public awareness about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the global issue of marine plastic pollution and the growing movement to reduce single-use plastics in Hawaiʻi and around the world.
“When Marcus completed his voyage on the Junk Raft in 2008, he became known as an intrepid eco-adventurer who helped publicize the Garbage Patch and the issue of marine plastic pollution,” says Stuart Coleman, Surfrider’s Hawaiʻi manager and co-founder of BooksAndSpirits.com, an event sponsor. “In the 10 years since that epic voyage, he has become one of the leaders of the international plastic pollution movement. So we are thrilled to have him back in Hawaiʻi for the 10th anniversary of that voyage.”
The event is free and open to the public but requires registration at: https://marcuseriksenseries.eventbrite.com. There will be light pupu and a cash bar, with copies of Eriksen’s book, Junk Raft, available purchase.
About the Better Tomorrow Speaker Series
UH founded the Better Tomorrow Speaker Series in 2011, and it has gained increased prominence in recent years. The purpose of the series is to bring compelling, insightful experts to Hawai‘i to address issues of acute importance to the islands and the wider world.
Event sponsors include UH, GEICO and The Royal Hawaiian Hotel. Additional sponsors include UH Mānoa Alumni Foundation, UH Public Policy Center, Surfrider Foundation’s O‘ahu Chapter, Kokua Hawaii Foundation, Conservation International, 5 Gyres, Hawaii Conservation Alliance, Leap Lap and Books & Spirits.