About me
My name is Margrethe Bojsen, I am a 21-year old ordinary seaman, skater, snowboarder and of course an Ocean Watcher here at Nordic Ocean Watch Denmark. All of these interests have led me on many interesting adventures around the world, from the skateparks of South Africa to the steep mountains of Austria and across the Atlantic to the Caribbean with the Trainingship Danmark. On my latest journey I worked as a deck-hand on the three masted schooner Linden at Svalbard, sailing with guests on sustainable arctic exploring. Now I am looking forward to gain more knowledge of the situation around plastic pollution in Indonesia and share some of our experiences and discoveries through this blog.
On a plastic expedition in Asia
From the majestic glaciers of Svalbard in the freezing Arctic Ocean, to the silky beaches of Indonesia in between the warm currents of the Indian and the Pacific ocean. Those are the settings for the two on-going expeditions arranged by the Danish organization Ekspedition Plastik, who works towards solutions, communication and a better understanding of the omnipresent plastic pollution in our oceans. On the 12th of November I will join the seven other crewmembers on Expedition Plastic Asia. With ages between 19 to 64 and skillsets ranging between a YouTuber, a journalist to a mechanic, we will set out on the ship Christianshavn. Powered by sails and curiosity we will explore the situation of plastic pollution in Indonesia and the Philippines.
The ship Christianshavn will be the base and means of transportation to me and the other crewmembers. The ship awaiting me is a 16,5 meter “Bermuda rigged” sailing yacht in steel, with a 24 meter mast. It was built in Belgium in 1953 by a polarscientist from Antwerpen. Right now the seven other crewmembers is making the ship ready for takeoff from Jajapura to Sorong, where I will meet them.
What would you bring to a desolated island (besides plastic)?
If you asked Svalbard the old question of “what it would bring to a desolated island?”, the answer would be polar bears, icebergs and frozen fjords. In my own backpack I brought an infinite amount of woolen cloths, raingear and hiking boot. If you asked Indonesia the same question “what it would bring to a desolated island?”, the answer would be vivid blue ocean, one of the worlds best bio-diversities and looong beaches. Currently I am myself packing bathing suits, sunscreen and sandals.
The recent ecological crisis in our oceans shows that sadly no one has been asking the islands this question. Instead they have unwillingly been brought plastic and continue to be filled up with plastic in dangerous amounts. Luckily some people are speaking up and acting on behalf of the islands’ nature, ecosystem and wildlife. Those are the local people and organizations I am looking forward to meet when I travel to Sorong in West Papua and sail onwards to Cebu in the Philippines.
A plastic fantastic place
The state of plastic pollution in Indonesia is at an alarming state. A lot of the distressing pictures circulating on the web of beached swamped by plastic and sea turtles with plastic in their airways and digestive system are sadly from Indonesia. Plastic is estimated to contribute around 25,000 tons per day out of Indonesia’s more than 190.000 tons of waste per day. 20 percent is believed to end up in rivers and coastal waters.[1] That is a huge problem as Indonesia holds a very unique bio-diversity that in many ways sustains the lives of Indonesian people and animals.
I am hoping of creating a more nuanced picture of the situation, to supplement cold statistics and viral photos, with insight into the political and cultural dimension of the problem and solutions, which seems to be universal difficulties for a lot of regions. We will broaden our understanding through knowledge sharing with the locals, beach cleanups and gathering samples of the extent of micro plastic in the water around the coast. We will also visit local organizations battling the plastic pollution. So stay tuned. Read more about Ekspedition Plastik.
Margrethe Bojsen