Plastic Whale founder Marius Smit announced on Thursday, June 29, the launch of his latest project, Cathedrall, a floating cathedral built using a diverse range of urban waste materials.
This initiative is a collaborative effort with creative studio D/DOCK and impact innovation agency Max-G.
Smit intends to inspire and engage audiences towards a circular economy through this floating Cathedrall initiative.
Floating cathedrall
The floating cathedral will serve as a multidisciplinary hub fostering collaboration among individuals, businesses, and government entities. It will also offer educational programmes, lectures, and exhibitions.
Set to be located in Amsterdam, construction is slated to commence in late 2023, coinciding with the grand unveiling during Sail 2025.
“We believe the floating cathedral can be a powerful symbol of change, by building something very beautiful out of waste materials,” says Smit.
“Almost everyone knows we need to move from a linear to a circular economy. But we unfortunately see few products and projects that appeal to and engage the general public appealing and engaging. The subject matter is often highly technical and difficult to understand. We want to change that, starting with this building.”
“This place should demonstrate clearly that we need to look differently at waste and raw materials. A place that makes circularity tangible. Here we want to bring people together who are convinced that we can and must do things differently,” he adds.
Creating a circular future
As far as the creation of the floating cathedral, the concept, design, and activation responsibilities lie with D/DOCK.
The creative studio focuses not only on designing the building and its various spaces, but also on interpreting how those spaces are used.
Inspired by the abbey as a hub for research and innovation, the designers aim to bring about positive behavioural change through their design and activation efforts.
Max-G, on the other hand, contributes their expertise in developing a business model that combines sustainability and financial viability.
Esther Zijtregtop of Max-G says, “As far as we are concerned, sustainable initiatives that solely depend on donations or subsidies are difficult to sustain. We believe that we need to look at a different way at building businesses to arrive at a new economic standard that is not just about shareholders. For Cathedrall this means all parties working together to create positive results on a social, environmental and financial level.”
The three founding partners believe that the most groundbreaking solutions are created by bringing different people, ideas and technologies together.
Cathedrall founders are calling on companies, organisations and individuals to participate in the project.
“By working together and sharing expertise and resources, participating parties can make a significant contribution to the realisation of the floating cathedral,” says Smit.
“Only through joint efforts can we create a circular future. So, of course, we need a berth, a pontoon to build on, construction partners, waste materials, manufacturers with innovative circular technologies, and investors,” concludes Smit.
Read the orginal article: https://siliconcanals.com/news/startups/plastic-whales-floating-cathedrall/
