The Circular Revolution - Towards Zero

The Circular Revolution - Towards Zero schools project and art exhibition was completed by twelve schools involving over 750 children in Co Clare. The project was led by artist and Explorers Education officer Carmel T. Madigan from Loophead Summer Hedge School, where the children considered how to reuse discarded materials from their local beaches in creative ways – so as to generate zero-waste.

As part of this project, over 100 rubbish bags of plastic were collected from the local seashores in County Clare. It included a wide range of plastics such as cling film, fishing nets, coat hangers, bottles, bottle caps, and children's discarded toys. With a little bit of cleaning and sorting, the discarded items of plastic were used in the classroom where the students considered stories of where the plastic originally came from. It also led to conversations about the amount of single-use plastic that is being produced in the world today.

The students became fully engaged young citizens working with Carmel and proposed small behaviour changes offering significant solutions for a healthier ocean, starting in their schools and at home with recycling, reusing and replacing plastics..

The project resulted in an art exhibition curated by Carmel and involved the children, teachers and schools showcasing twenty exquisite art installations, that had been created by the children.  The exhibit held in a public art gallery provided an incredible level of information reminding us of the impact that marine litter is having on the world ocean including the Atlantic.

The Circular Revolution - Towards Zero virtual exhibition presented by Carmel Madigan, Loophead Summer Hedge School, shows showcases an incredible example of art, science and community engagement, around the topic of marine litter and a circular economy.