Meet MAKO in IJmuiden

On July 22-25, friends and partners of Healthy Seas, Herpetofauna Foundation and We Are Nature, gathered in the Netherlands for a celebratory event.

The long programme included a 2-day cleanup of the beautiful beach of IJmuiden, stepping on ‘MAKO’, our first ghost net recover vessel and meeting the Ghost Diving volunteers that run it, educational activities for over 60 children and a close look at Hyundai’s new Hydrogen Fuel Cell truck.

Guests included DAN Europe ambassadors Manuel Bustelo and Alana Alvarez, who stopped by during their Sustainable Tour that aims at promoting a sustainable lifestyle as well as the importance of keeping the Oceans healthy.

The event was also held in the framework of the DG Mare’s European Maritime Day in My Country, an important part of the wave of ocean awareness and activism that has been rising steadily in recent years. “Goody” bags with informational content and Healthy Seas Socks were handed out to all children that also enjoyed a state-of-art virtual reality experience about Healthy Seas’ journey from waste to wear as well as the company of Echo and Astro, the turtle and dolphin mascots.

The event wrapped up with the MAKO’s maiden ghost net recovery voyage, MV MAKO was acquired back in November thanks to a generous donation by DWS.

The event was made possible also to Hyundai Motor Europe that announced its partnership with Healthy Seas back in April. They are providing funding for the implementation of Healthy Seas cleanup and education activities.