Boat built from 30,000 items of recycled plastic to set sail across the Indian Ocean

A boat built from 30,000 items of recycled plastic will set sail on a two-week expedition across the Indian Ocean to raise awareness about marine plastic pollution.

The Flipflopi, which has been backed by UNEP Clean Seas Initiative, has been built using discarded rubbish collected from Kenyan beaches.

Due to set sail on 24th January, the 30 ft long sailing boat, made up of 30,000 flipflops, will set sail from Lamu to Kenya as part of a two-week expedition.

The FlipFlopi will sail south along the coasts of Kenya holding events in partnership with local organisations and communities to 'change people's mindsets' about single-use plastic before crossing into northern Tanzania.

Project founder Ben Morison teamed up with boat builder Ali Skanda, and a team of volunteers, to build this nine-metre traditional ‘dhow’ sailing boat.

The project has been supported by Northumbria University, with designer expert Simon Scott-Harden part of the team behind the Flipflopi.

“The FlipFlopi is living proof that we can live differently. It is a reminder of the urgent need for us to rethink the way we manufacture, use and manage single-use plastic,” said Joyce Msuya, UN Environment’s Acting Executive Director.

“Kenya has demonstrated tremendous leadership in addressing the epidemic of single-use plastic by banning plastic bags. We are clearly moving in the right direction but we need a drastic shift in consumption patterns and waste management practices across the world.”