Blue Cradle Foundation is an ocean research and education organization based in Christchurch, New Zealand. HansaWorld is proud to have supported an expedition focusing on microplastics and biosecurity with the aim of making ocean science more accessible.
Why microplastics? Unfortunately, despite recent findings about dangers that microplastics pose, there are still many issues that the public are not aware of, and it’s not just the threats to marine life that we’re taking about. We are surrounded by plastic every day; from the clothes we wear to the bottles we drink from. This plastic breaks down into tiny pieces that we eventually swallow with water and food, and inhale with the air we breathe in unbelievable amounts. A study conducted at Wageningen University in the Netherlands suggests that we could be ingesting around a credit card’s mass of microplastic a year. Reportedly, these tiny particles could possibly penetrate our cells and cause cancer.
At HansaWorld, we are trying to draw more attention to these issues both through research and education. First, we created a video explaining the danger of microplastics; helping Blue Cradle Foundation with their research was a logical next step.
Our Development Manager, Kae Bohlin, and her daughter Shevonne had an opportunity to join the expedition and see everything with their own eyes:
“It was a great honor to join the expedition and a priceless experience for Shevonne. Doing what we can to save the planet and increase awareness means a lot to us. Being able to help initiatives like this and enabling future generations of scientists is something we’re always happy to do”, she says.
The expedition sailed from Auckland to the Bay of Islands collecting samples and monitoring marine habitats.
"The team was really surprised by the fact that an ERP software development company is funding their research. They kept asking what our interest was, but this is just who we are. Our interest is our planet”, notes Kae.
HansaWorld hopes that through teams of passionate researchers like Blue Cradle Foundation the world will find solutions for major problems and future generations will inherit a clean and green planet. We are doing our part and HansaWorld is looking for ways to continue supporting the organization's future projects. Good luck with your important job, Blue Cradle!