Welcome to EVERNET’s Humans in Tech blog! In honor of Earth Day, which is April 22, this edition is centered around environmental sustainability and the role that technology can play in protecting our planet.
At EVERNET, we believe that technology can be a powerful force for good. We are excited to highlight the inspiring work of individuals and organizations who are using technology to make a positive impact on the world.
One such individual is Boyan Slat, a Dutch inventor and entrepreneur who has dedicated his career to tackling one of the world’s most pressing environmental issues: ocean plastic pollution. Through his organization, The Ocean Cleanup, Slat has developed transformative technologies and deployed them in some of the world’s most polluted areas. Their goal is to remove millions of tons of plastic waste from our oceans.
We are thrilled to feature Boyan Slat in this edition of Humans in Tech, helping to share his vision for a cleaner, healthier future for our planet and how technology can help us get there. Join us in celebrating Earth Day and exploring the intersection of technology and sustainability!
Boyan Slat & The Ocean Cleanup
As mentioned above, Boyan Slat has dedicated his life to solving one of the world’s most pressing environmental problems. His organization, The Ocean Cleanup, is focused on developing and scaling technologies to remove plastic from the world’s oceans. They have an ambitious goal of removing 90% of floating ocean plastic by 2040.
Boyan’s passion for cleaning up the oceans began when he was just 16 years old. While scuba diving on vacation in Greece, he saw more plastic bags than fish. This experience left him wondering, “Why can’t we just clean this up?” He began looking into the problem and researching possible technological solutions to clean up ocean plastic pollution.
Boyan Slat’s interest in technology and innovation began at a young age. At 13 years old, he became fascinated with rocketry. Eventually, this led him to set a Guinness World Record for the most water rockets launched at the same time, an impressive 213. This experience taught Boyan valuable lessons in getting people excited about a project and how to approach potential sponsors, skills that would come in handy later in his career.
While studying aerospace engineering at Delft University of Technology, Boyan couldn’t shake the idea of cleaning up the oceans. He shared his concept at a TEDx Conference in late 2012, with a talk titled, “How the Oceans can Clean Themselves.” A few months later and seemingly out of nowhere, his TEDx video went viral. Boyan’s presentation was picked up and publicized by various news blogs and outlets, pushing the video around the world. This momentum allowed him to assemble an initial team of volunteers and launch a crowdfunding campaign. In turn, that funded a year-long feasibility study, the first real step in bringing Boyan’s technological solutions to life and starting The Ocean Cleanup.
Boyan led the organization through the initial scientific work, testing, and concept iterations. Today, The Ocean Cleanup is actively cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Additionally, they have deployed Interceptors in some of the world’s most polluted rivers to prevent plastic from reaching the ocean in the first place.
Technology of The Ocean Cleanup
The Ocean Cleanup has developed two main technologies to achieve their goal: The Interceptor and The System.
The Interceptor is a scalable technology that can extract plastic waste from rivers and prevent it from reaching the ocean. It is solar-powered and autonomous, meaning it requires minimal maintenance and can operate in remote areas. The System is a passive cleanup system designed to capture plastic waste in the ocean using its natural forces. In turn, this concentrates plastic in a particular area, making it easier to collect and remove.
The Ocean Cleanup’s technology has shown promising results, with the organization achieving Proof of Technology for the Interceptor in 2021. The Interceptor has been deployed in several rivers worldwide, including the Klang River in Malaysia and the Cengkareng Drain in Indonesia, and has successfully extracted plastic waste from these rivers.
Their other cleanup concept, The System, has been deployed in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and the results have been encouraging. To date, they have covered nearly 1 million football fields worth of ocean and have removed over 200,000 kg of waste with The System 002.
This organization has now partnered with dozens of global brands such as Coca-Cola, Maersk, and KIA to help them reach their goal of removing all plastics from the ocean.
The Ocean Cleanup’s mission to rid the world’s oceans of plastic is a complex and challenging one. Still, Boyan’s determination and dedication have enabled him to overcome these obstacles and develop technologies that have shown promising results. Boyan’s work is a reminder that with passion and perseverance, we can solve even the most daunting environmental problems. If you’re interested in following the progress of The Ocean Cleanup’s efforts, be sure to visit their Impact Dashboard to stay up to date.
EVERNET is obsessed with technology and with spreading our love and knowledge of all things tech. Check back often for useful and fun (yes, fun!) tech info, news, and trivia. Fill your brain with loads of IT Ice Breakers for your next human gathering.
Eric is a Business IT cybersecurity advisor, consultant, manager, integrator, and protector who founded EVERNET in 2007. Eric co-hosts a podcast called “Finance and Technology Insights by Brian & Eric” on YouTube. Eric is a regular contributor to the EVERNET blog, writing about the latest technology news and providing his expertise in cyber security prevention and management.
