As garbage dumps overflow and oceans fill up with waste, some innovators are starting to make a constructive connection between modern consumption and the destruction of our world’s oceans.

Plastic’s sturdiness, low cost, and pliability mean that it’s being used more and more in consumer and industrial products. In addition plastic is not biodegradable and instead just breaks down into smaller pieces.

“If you’re not buying recycled products, you’re not really recycling.”

– says Ed Begley, Jr. actor and environmentalist.

(You can learn more about the plastic in our oceans from our cool infographics.)

“Eco-friendly”, “biodegradable”, “sustainable” are terms that, until very recently, were not familiar to the fashion lexicon. But this has begun to change.

Bionic Yarn meets G-Star Raw

Bionic Yarn is collaborating with the designer G-Star Raw, to create a variety of denim products all woven with tons of ocean plastic, in the RAW for the Oceans line.

Tyson Toussant, co-founder of Bionic Yarn says, “I had to face the fact that the only way people are going to move is if it appeals to their vanity.”

Toussant’s idea of bringing vanity to the table in the struggle to keep our oceans from suffocating with trash, has caught on with several other fashion labels.

Adidas – Parley for the Oceans

Adidas has also joined the recycled products fashion trend. The company most recently unveiled its collaboration with Parley for the Oceans– a sneaker designed of an upper made with ocean plastic and a midsole which is 3D printed using recycled materials.

Eric Liedtke, Adidas Group Executive Board Member, Responsible For Global Brands said:

“We want to bring everyone from the industry to the table and create sustainable solutions for big global problems.”

DAKINE BLUE surf packs

DAKINE was a bit ahead of its time, releasing its project BLUE surf packs in its 2009 collection.

The packs were made from 100% recycled plastic bottles. In addition DAKINE donated part of the proceeds to the Surfrider Foundation.

Unfortunately the line os no longer available in their collection.

What can YOU do for the oceans?

To make a positive difference, here are three simple ways you can help protect the ocean—wherever you are.

For starters, check out the Seafood Watch app from Monterey Bay Aquarium, available for both iPhone and Android! Know what you are buying, where it is from, and how it was caught (or was it farmed).

Leave only waves and footprints behind! With Marine Debris Tracker, it takes seconds to report where you find marine debris or trash anywhere in the world… and then prevent it from impacting our oceans.

And don’t forget to Bring Your Own! The garbage we “throw away” doesn’t just disappear. Plastic bags, plastic food containers, and other loose trash eventually end up in the ocean where it poses a major threat to marine life.

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