Hi everyone,
today I like to highlight a call for donations for my friend Rishi (Richart), who is building a plastic bottle island called Joysxee in the bay of Isla Mujeres, Mexico.
After a few years of construction work Rishi’s island Joysxee is now close to its grand launch into the ocean.
A little more about Richart: The construction of Joysxee is fascinating; Richart (who also goes by the nickname Rishi) collects plastic bottles from all around Isla Mujeres and he puts them into recycled fruit sacks to create a floating platform. Palettes are put on top of the full fruit sacks, then plywood and carpeting on top of that, and then a covering of sand, dirt, and rocks. On top of all this sits his house which is made from reused wood framing and contains a composting toilet, rain catcher, conch shell intercom system, and so much more. The baby mangroves which he plants on the edges of the island serve as an additional locking system as the roots take hold of the bottles below. In a few months time the new bags of bottles will host barnacles and even corals and lock into place underneath to provide more support to the entire island. The bottles are sealed and remain in darkness under the island which prevents them from deteriorating in the sun’s UV rays. The result is a floating island, created with approximately 70% recycled material which undulates with the waves. Rishi is continuously adding more bags of plastic bottles to the island so it can continue to grow and expand. He has numerous plants which grow on the island including; palm trees, sea grapes, mangroves, cactus, spinach, tomatoes, melons, lemons, herbs and flowering shrubs.
- Scott Mader on Kickstarter.com
As I’ve visited Rishi two times during my world tour 2009 on Joysxee island and we have had some very good talks, I do strongly believe that he and his wonderful island will make their way into the ocean.
Still, help is always welcome! Many tourists who stop by the island donate some money, Rishi uses for new construction material and technology like solar panels. Some travellers and friends give whatever they can afford or makes their packbags unnecessarily heavy. When I’ve visited Rishi, I brought with me some delicious food, one plastic bottle and some tools like a scissors.
For the grand launch of the wonderful plastic bottle island Rishi is now listed on Kickstarter.com.
Check out the Kickstarter.com website, see the following links below and read through the articles I have written during my stay on Isla Mujeres, to get more information about Rishi (Richart Sowa) and his plastic bottle island Joysxee.
If you do like the ecologic idea of creating new land for trees and a new environment for animals and human with the plastic trash our society produces – become part of the movement and help by supporting my friend Richart!
All money raised will be used to grow Joysxee Island and make it more robust for the launch into the bay of Isla Mujeres, Mexico.
- Kickstarter.com
Donations can be made from USD 1,- through Kickstarter.com, using your Amazon account.
If enough people do believe in this idea and the goal of USD 18.000,- is reached within two weeks, your donation will be transferred. In case the set goal of USD 18.000,- is missed, no money will change hands and Amazon will not debit your bank account for your set donation.
As you donate, you will receive (in case the project reaches its goal) some gifts from Rishi – depending on how much you like to donate – check out Kickstarter.com ;-)
Even you might only donate USD 1,- (that are only 0,71 Euro), your donation will be USD 1,- of shown hope for this project! =)
Here are some more information about this great project
- my written stories during my stay on Isla Mujeres, Mexico
- the last day at Isla Mujeres
- meeting Richart on his island! =)
- on my way …
- today & my friend Richart’s island =)
- my photos or Rishi’s island
Isla Mujeres 2009
- future links
- Grand Launch: Recycled Plastic Bottle Ecological Art Island
- Spiral Islanders
- YouTube – Richart Sowa
- Flickr – Rishi Sowa
- Wikipedia – Spiral Islanders
- Facbook – Richart Sowa
- YouTube video
