The Universal Sea – Pure or Plastic?!

The art and innovation movement fighting the plastic epidemic!
 
Here at The Universal Sea we explore new forms of collaborations between art, science, technology, and business. Art is at the core as it reaches people emotionally, sparks creativity and gets people involved. Moreover, we accompany this artistic core with exploring new business models for both artists and other cultural actors. The Universal Sea isn't just about rediscovering the role of the artist in our society, it's about revealing the opportunities of art meeting science and entrepreneurship. With the collaboration of experts and the public, we identify and co-create solutions tackling the burning issue of water pollution. We believe that art can trigger the spark for action, open new perspectives and support the development of creative solutions. 

As we see artists as a catalyst for change with their power of critical thinking and creativity, we started with a worldwide Open Call in November 2017. We were overwhelmed by the response we received, with over 250 applications coming from 38 countries. From this, the list was narrowed to 100 finalists, before our international jury had the difficult task of choosing the 5 artists that would join our intensive collaborative journey. These artists will run participatory actions with the public and work closely together with experts, together with us throughout our entire journey.

What are we doing?

This year we are bringing a vibrant series of 8 events to 8 different European countries. Having successfully launched the project, with our opening in Poland on April 22nd, we now look forward to launching our 6 stations across Europe (Helsinki, Pristina, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Venice, Berlin), before rounding out the year with The Universal Sea festival in Budapest.

Each station consists of an exhibition with artistic interventions as well as inspirational insights and success stories from a range of thought-leaders and change drivers. Before finally a co-creation workshop in hackathon-style that unites the diverse perspectives and identifies promising entrepreneurial opportunities. Thus, The Universal Sea enables both the development of existing solutions, while also accelerating the conception of new solutions to fight the plastic epidemic.
 

 
We need your help to support the first 3 of our stations across Europe. With your generosity, we can provide the space for artistic interventions, and the forum for collaboration to facilitate the organic exchange of idea's and innovation to push forward solutions to beat the plastic epidemic.

No matter how big or small, every donations matters. Step by step, together we can begin to roll back the plastic pollution that is plaguing our oceans.