Planning our TEDx Great Pacific Garbage Patch Live Webstreaming for November 6th

Having diligently followed the creation then 5 month voyage of "The Plastiki" this past summer, I can't get enough info about the horrors called "The Great Pacific Garbage Patch."  (For anyone needing back-story, check in on the following GTG articles:  http://greenteamgazette.blogspot.com/search/label/Plastiki)

Approximately 10 days from now, on November 6th, I'll be pairing with my school, Eagle Cove School, to host a Livestream Watch Party of the TEDx Great Pacific Garbage Patch event with our school community.  We'll be taking advantage of technology and the gathering of great minds to highlight the environmental impacts of plastic pollution and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The TEDx Great Pacific Garbage Patch Webcast Event is sponsored by: 

--TEDx : An Independent off-shoot of the TED Talks which unite leaders from "Technology, Entertainment, & Design;"

--Plastic Pollution Coalition: An organization dedicated to increasing awareness of the toxic effects of plastic pollution;

--Mission Blue:  A global partnership focused on restoring oceanic health for marine wildlife & protected areas.

Featured TEDx Great Garbage Patch Speakers

Sylvia Earle ~ American oceanographer. Former chief scientist for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from 1990-1992. Current Explorer in Residence at the National Geographic Society. 

Ed Begley, Jr. ~ actor, environmentalist/activist. Author of "Living Like Ed: A Guide to the Eco-Friendly Life," published in 2008 and star of Planet Green TV's show (of same name) on green living. 

David de Rothschild ~ British adventurer/ environmentalist, head of "Adventure Ecology," (a climate change expedition group). In March of 2010 he trekked across the Pacific Ocean from Los Angeles, CA to Sydney, Australia on the Plastiki, a boat he had made of 12,500 plastic water bottles. He did this to bring awareness to the Oceanic Garbage Patch.

John Dramani Mahama ~ vice president of the Republic of Ghana.

Captain Charles Moore ~ founder of the Algalita Marine Research Foundation. He has sampled more than 40,000 miles of water/plastic of the North Pacific Ocean.
Chris Malloy ~ surfer and visionary. He has surfed every continent and has found plastic in the most remote of places.

And many, many more!! For the complete listing, go to http://www.tedxgreatpacificgarbagepatch.com/meet-our-speakers/

Here is the Nov. 6th Agenda as listed from TEDx Agenda  

(all times have been modified from the Pacific time zone to our time zone:) 

11:30 am EST    (8:30 am PST)
Welcome from Plastic Pollution Coalition and Mission Blue

12:00 pm EST   (9:00 am PST)
Morning Session: Reporting The Problem

      * Topic 1: Plastic Pollution and Ocean Health
      * Topic 2: Plastic Pollution and Terrestrial Animals
      * Topic 3: Plastic Pollution and Public Health   

      * Topic 4: Growing Economic Costs of Plastic Pollution  

      * Topic 5: Exponential Growth of Consumption

5:00 pm EST   (2:00 pm PST)
Afternoon Session: Exploring The Solutions

     * Topic 1: Building Awareness and Outreach; Leading by example
     * Topic 2: Businesses Altering Their Practices
     * Topic 3: Investing In the Future: Science, Research and Technology
     * Topic 4: Plastic Alternatives
     * Topic 5: Global Policy Initiatives

6:30 pm EST   (3:30 pm PST)
Call to Action and Global Challenges

7:00 pm EST    (4:00 pm PST)
Closing Remarks

Where is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?

Use this Info Graphic to see where the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is located. Then imagine that black spot to be millions, billions of pieces of plastic trash in various sizes. Some are bite-sized bits called "nurdles" that outnumber plankton 6 to 1. These nurdles seem like the perfect snack for marine animals, which ultimately harms marine wildlife as well as putting plastic into our food chain.

 

 For more on TEDx, go to http://www.tedxgreatpacificgarbagepatch.com/.