A staggering 3 billion people on planet earth wear flip flops ( thongs in Australia )as their primary form of shoe as they are so affordable.
Flip Flops are made from a combination of Ethylene-Vinyl Acetate and other plastics and they do not biodegrade. They do however photo-degrade, breaking up into smaller and smaller pieces to form part of the plastic soup plaguing our oceans.
50% of those flip flops are used in Asia. The refuse systems in many Asian countries are poor and the flip flops end up in the rivers. The rivers lead to the sea where the trade-winds drive them onto the east coast of Africa
Ocean Sole transforms over 50 tons a year of discarded flip-flops in the ocean and on land, upcycling them into art to help raise awareness of the problem globally.
These wonderful animals are playful art pieces, and the sale of these amazing creations is cleaning up over thousands of tons of flip-flops from the ocean and waterways in Kenya, as well as providing steady income to over 150 low-income Kenyans.