(Eriksen, Marcus) Marcus Eriksen is the cofounder and director of research for the 5 Gyres Institute. A scientist, activist, and inveterate adventurer, Eriksen is drawn to the sea by a desire to right an environmental injustice. With firsthand experience from more than twenty ocean-crossing expeditions, he has written and published research on the impact of plastic pollution in the world’s oceans. Junk Raft (Beacon Press) tells the exciting story of Eriksen and his team’s fight to solve this insidious catastrophe. Against long odds and common sense, Eriksen and his co-navigator construct a “junk raft” made of plastic trash and set themselves adrift from Los Angeles to Hawaii, with no motor or support vessel, confronting perilous cyclones, food shortages, and a fast decaying raft. Junk Raft provides concrete, actionable solutions and an empowering message: it’s within our power to change the throw-away culture for the sake of our planet.
