4 Green Foundation

Non-profit organization 4Green Foundation has renovated a ship to be completely self-sufficient in terms of energy usage, equipped with two onboard recycling systems to recycle plastic waste collected along the journey with local children and raise awareness . 

Originally a Trintella IV, the boat was completely renovated over 4 years to produce the current self-sufficient New Nexus boat. 

The recycling machines onboard are used to produce flower pots from plastic waste collected along the way from the beaches, streets, and sea. The plastic is collected with the help of children and locals in the area, who help in sorting, shredding, and recycling of the plastic into flower pots. 

Shredding is achieved through the "Hulk" machine, which generates plastic pallets to be used as raw material for the flower pots. To melt the plastic during recycling, 4Green uses a solar-powered SunStofey oven. This takes about 3 hours and eliminates the need to use fossil fuels in the process. Each completed flower pot is comprised of 0.5kg of plastic.

In a partnership with Envitron, the New Nexus has sensors fitted onboard which records all data regarding the amount of energy generated, stored and consumed on the boat. The data is then relayed to the interface through the internet, from where it can be accessed worldwide. 

4Green Foundation also partners with local schools in Groningen, educating the children on environmental issues and involving them in a plastic collection project. 

The foundation provides crowdfunding opportunities on One Planet Crowd, allowing interested people to take a sailing trip on the 4Green yacht.