Students at McMurray Middle School are learning about ocean garbage through a project that will include a visit from an adventurer and filmmaker, who will show some of her films on Vashon next week.
The school’s project, called Sea the Change, is meant to inform about the amount of waste in the ocean, particularly the billions of pounds of plastic waste, according to Gates Johnson, assistant to the principal at McMurray and one of the project’s advisors. She noted that many efforts on the island require donations, but that is not the case with this project, aimed solely at educating.
“We don’t need any money,” she said. “What we want to do is spread awareness. Awareness is free,” she said. “That is our goal.”
Over the course of the past two months, McMurray’s student council and the leadership class have put together an extended program that focuses on marine debris and how to mitigate it. Guest speakers will take part, including Alison Teal, who is best known for her films that focus on survival and sustainability in places all over the world, as well as her appearance on the Discovery Channel’s survival show Naked and Afraid.
As part of the project, the school will host an assembly featuring Teal and two others working to address marine pollution: a representative from the Seattle company Nube9, which produces clothing from recycled plastic bottles, and Nir Barnea, the regional director for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, who will speak about the sources of marine debris, its impact on the environment and how to keep it from increasing.
Reached last week, Teal said she is looking forward to her time at the school.
“Kids are my favorite people to inspire because they are the leaders of the future,” she said.
She is passionate about the issue of plastics in the ocean and noted that when she participated in Naked and Afraid in the Maldives, she was amazed at the amount of plastic that washed ashore every day from the world over. One year later, she returned and created the film “One Person’s Trash Is Another Woman’s Bikini,” which focuses on the problem of plastic pollution in the world’s oceans. Though a big believer in humor — which comes across in her films — her message is a serious one.
“I am hoping to share how important it is to stop using plastic if we want our planet to survive, because if the oceans die, we die,” she said.
Teal’s website likens her to Indiana Jones — but sporting a pink surf board — and includes a variety of short films she created, including her film from the Maldives, which she will show on Vashon in an evening presentation open to the public. She will show other films as well, she said, and will choose which ones depending on the audience.
“I like an element of surprise,” she added.
Contenders include those that feature her adventurer parents in Hawaii and films that focus on a lost island of fire walkers, efforts to restore reefs in Fiji and the Lord of the Rings mountains in New Zealand.
A world traveler since she was born, Teal added that the world holds incredible wisdom and culture that not many get to see, but which she has been privy to. People often ask her how she lives such a dream life.
“That is what I hope to share,” she added. “I hope I can inspire people to live their dreams and passion. And give them tools to do so.”
Teal notes she is all about entertainment — and that value will be evident in her presentation.
“Be prepared to be highly entertained and learn something along the way,” she said. “Buckle your seat belts.”
