10 Rivers 1 Ocean

#WEAREALLINTHESAMEBOAT

10 RIVERS 1 OCEAN

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HUMAN HISTORY, SOMETHING UNITES US BEYOND ALL BORDERS. THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY WE SHOULD NOT MISS TAKING.

For 10 Rivers 1 Ocean project, the explorer Alex Bellini will navigate the ten most plastic-polluted rivers in the world with the goal of inspiring a new understanding and respect for the world’s most-threatened, delicate ecosystems: our waterways. If we keep up the speed with which we are dumping plastic in the oceans, there will be more plastic than creatures in the sea by 2050. But if everyone makes a commitment, we can forge a new path for the human adventure on this planet.

#weareallinthesameboat

I'll build myself a new raft for each river. Each raft mirror the habits of the people who live there.
ALEX BELLINI

Travel Journal

Alex's adventure river after river

20.01.2020

Our time on the Pearl River has come to an end

LOGBOOK 7 #PERALRIVER

I have to admit that the environmental status of the river is better than I ever thought. I'm happy about that, but part of me wanted to wallow in plastic, in a pile of plastic. Perhaps the message of how urgent it is for us to change would come louder to the eyes and ears of the people who followed me.

17.01.2020

Like the antennas of an insect, your feet try to understand

LOGBOOK 6 #PERALRIVER

For many years, Folco has been walking barefoot. He walked barefoot in China, too.So I’ve asked him why, what’s the point of it?  And he said to me: Generally, we walk barefoot to simplify, to return to the earth, to feel it with our hands down.

16.01.2020

As always, long-term change is an uphill battle

LOGBOOK 5 #PERALRIVER

As always, long-term change is an uphill battle, and this can be seen on the riverbanks, but what is heartening is that a relatively poor country has made a conscious choice to shift its focus from the quantity to the quality of growth.

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Our planet is in our hands, but sometimes we live as if it were there for us to trample under foot.
Alex Bellini

PROJECT

THREE-PART ACTION

TRE AZIONI PER REALIZZARE L’IMPRESA - Navigare - 10 Rivers 1 Ocean

NAVIGATE

Alex aims to explore the most polluted rivers in the world. Each river is a new adventure: from building his boat with waste found on the river shores to building relationships with the local people.

TRE AZIONI PER REALIZZARE L’IMPRESA - Condividere - 10 Rivers 1 Ocean

SHARE

Alex aims to help foster a new understanding and respect for our planet and its most precious and threatened environments — our bodies of water.

TRE AZIONI PER REALIZZARE L’IMPRESA - Educare - 10 Rivers 1 Ocean

EDUCATE

The expedition aims to be a spur to urgent action. With the right mix of authenticity and credibility, it will offer new, effective solutions to this pressing environmental crisis.

ALEX'S JOURNEY

ALEX'S JOURNEY THE STAGES OF 10 RIVERS 1 OCEAN

  • Ganges in Varanasi

    Ganges

    The Mother Goddess who purifies the faithful is far from enjoying good health herself. The Ganges is on the verge of death. Paradoxically, while she gives new spiritual energy to those who immerse themselves in her water to cleanse their sins, she risks spreading death instead.

    Read more
  • Pacific Garbage Patch

    Great Pacific Garbage Patch

    A mass of plastic waste has accumulated in the sub-tropical ocean vortex of the Pacific Ocean holding around 80,000 tons of debris. An artificial island made up of trillions of pieces of plastic is growing year after year.

    Read more
  • Pearl River

    Pearl River

    Industrial and domestic wastewater, everything is dumped into the river. So much that some parts of its course have become dark and murky. It definitely no longer has the lustre its name suggests. Chinese authorities are devising immediate solutions.

    Read more
  • Nile

    Nile

    The longest river in the world has given rise to and supported ancient civilizations, the cradle of modern-day cultures. Today, heavy metals and petroleum agents are detected in its water. This is an enormous problem for the seven African countries which the Nile crosses.

    Read more
  • Po

    E il fiume più lungo d’Italia, ma non è vissuto come un fiume nazionale. Attraversa quattro regioni e per un lungo tratto ne demarca il confine. Ogni città, ogni singolo territorio, da Torino a Ferrara, sente come proprio il solo pezzetto prospiciente, come se a monte o valle non gli appartenesse, finendo per essere acqua di nessuno.

    Read more
  • 10 rivers 1 ocean – Hai He river

    Hai He

    This river is part of the waterways near Beijing. Several years ago, a chemical plant on its shores released toxins that caused thousands of dead fish to wash up on its banks. This must be a wake-up call for the Chinese authorities.

    Read more
  • 10 rivers 1 ocean – yellow river

    Yellow River

    The Yellow River once supported the agriculture of a large part of China with its waters' extraordinary fertilizing properties, rich with sediments called loess. But today it has become a dump for paint factories.

    Read more
  • 10 rivers 1 ocean – Yangtze

    Yangtze

    The Yangtze was named for the proverbial (one-time) clarity of its water. Some stretches of its course have been certified by UNESCO as a cultural heritage landscape. But, today, it is threatened by hydraulic projects and industrial waste.

    Read more
  • 10 rivers 1 ocean – Amur river

    Amur

    Seven hundred kilometers of this river marks the border between Russia and China. About ten years ago, it had the dishonour of making the news for an environmental catastrophe: a benzene spill from a petrochemical factory. And the river has kept on being polluted since.

    Read more
  • Mekong delta

    Mekong

    Indochina's main river is the major site of electricity production, as more and more dams are built and hundreds of industrial complexes pour toxins into its water. The 1,200 fish species populating the Mekong are at risk.

    Read more
  • Indus river

    Indus

    Indus river flows between India and Pakistan, in the Kashmir region which is also an area of strong political conflicts between the two countries. It has always played a role of primary importance for the irrigation of the land, severely tested by climate change and pollution.

    Read more
  • Niger

    Niger

    The Niger gave its name to two of the countries it crosses — Nigeria and, of course, Niger. Now it is at risk of disappearing. The water of the river is fiercely contested for fishing because it irrigates cattle pastures, and it is also in danger from industrial sewage.

    Read more

ALEX'S JOURNEY

ALEX'S JOURNEY THE STAGES OF 10 RIVERS 1 OCEAN

Ganges
Read more
Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Read more
Pearl River
Read more
Nile
Read more
Po
Read more
Hai He
Read more
Yellow River
Read more
Yangtze
Read more
Amur
Read more
Mekong
Read more
Indus
Read more
Niger
Read more

Ganges

Stage ended

The Mother Goddess who purifies the faithful is far from enjoying good health herself. The Ganges is on the verge of death. Paradoxically, while she gives new spiritual energy to those who immerse themselves in her water to cleanse their sins, she risks spreading death instead.

Read more

Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Stage ended

A mass of plastic waste has accumulated in the sub-tropical ocean vortex of the Pacific Ocean holding around 80,000 tons of debris. An artificial island made up of trillions of pieces of plastic is growing year after year.

Read more

Pearl River

Stage ended

Industrial and domestic wastewater, everything is dumped into the river. So much that some parts of its course have become dark and murky. It definitely no longer has the lustre its name suggests. Chinese authorities are devising immediate solutions.

Read more

Nile

Stage ended

The longest river in the world has given rise to and supported ancient civilizations, the cradle of modern-day cultures. Today, heavy metals and petroleum agents are detected in its water. This is an enormous problem for the seven African countries which the Nile crosses.

Read more

Po

Stage ended

E il fiume più lungo d’Italia, ma non è vissuto come un fiume nazionale. Attraversa quattro regioni e per un lungo tratto ne demarca il confine. Ogni città, ogni singolo territorio, da Torino a Ferrara, sente come proprio il solo pezzetto prospiciente, come se a monte o valle non gli appartenesse, finendo per essere acqua di nessuno.

Read more

Hai He

This river is part of the waterways near Beijing. Several years ago, a chemical plant on its shores released toxins that caused thousands of dead fish to wash up on its banks. This must be a wake-up call for the Chinese authorities.

Read more

Yellow River

The Yellow River once supported the agriculture of a large part of China with its waters' extraordinary fertilizing properties, rich with sediments called loess. But today it has become a dump for paint factories.

Read more

Yangtze

The Yangtze was named for the proverbial (one-time) clarity of its water. Some stretches of its course have been certified by UNESCO as a cultural heritage landscape. But, today, it is threatened by hydraulic projects and industrial waste.

Read more

Amur

Seven hundred kilometers of this river marks the border between Russia and China. About ten years ago, it had the dishonour of making the news for an environmental catastrophe: a benzene spill from a petrochemical factory. And the river has kept on being polluted since.

Read more

Mekong

Indochina's main river is the major site of electricity production, as more and more dams are built and hundreds of industrial complexes pour toxins into its water. The 1,200 fish species populating the Mekong are at risk.

Read more

Indus

Indus river flows between India and Pakistan, in the Kashmir region which is also an area of strong political conflicts between the two countries. It has always played a role of primary importance for the irrigation of the land, severely tested by climate change and pollution.

Read more

Niger

The Niger gave its name to two of the countries it crosses — Nigeria and, of course, Niger. Now it is at risk of disappearing. The water of the river is fiercely contested for fishing because it irrigates cattle pastures, and it is also in danger from industrial sewage.

Read more
We know in our hearts that any limit can be overcome. Believing this makes a solid starting point.
Alex Bellini

TAKE ACTION

When facing the environmental challenge caused by plastic, there is no “us and them.” We are all responsible and need to make our contribution so that we can come together in a network to raise awareness and add even just one second to every day of life our planet has left to live.