[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/10407\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EOn a mission to beat plastic pollution\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/projects.research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu\/en\/horizon-magazine\/auf-mission-im-kampf-gegen-plastikverschmutzung\u0022\u003Edeutsche Version\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EOftentimes they imagine a scientist being a crazy person in a lab suit, but then they themselves have been scientists\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs part of the German PlasticPiratesEU team, Tim and his colleagues have devised an innovative way to get students and teachers from schools around Germany and beyond to help gather information about the state of plastic pollution in rivers across Europe.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPlastic pollution is an issue that affects all of us, as it threatens wildlife, affects the quality of our oceans and rivers, and can damage our health. Having a clearer idea of how plastic pollution is distributed around our waterways is key to developing effective solutions to the problem, and analysing policies now in place, such as the EU-wide ban on single-use plastics.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cfigure role=\u0022group\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cimg alt=\u0022Samples of plastic pollution are being collected in European rivers as part of PlasticPiratesEU project, including in this river near Berlin, Germany.\u0022 data-entity-type=\u0022file\u0022 data-entity-uuid=\u00222b0bf3d0-4f16-437b-9b13-8895cf56a553\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/hm\/IMCEUpload\/pe.png\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cfigcaption class=\u0022tw-italic tw-mb-4\u0022\u003ESamples of plastic pollution are being collected in European rivers as part of PlasticPiratesEU project, including in this river near Berlin, Germany.\u003C\/figcaption\u003E\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe work being carried out by Tim and other researchers of the Plastic Pirates all across Europe is a key example of how research initiatives taking place on a local level around Europe are capable of having a global impact.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETime to get our hands dirty\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBringing schools on board has been vital to gather enough data to form a pollution map of rivers around Europe. Classes who participate, are sent a sampling kit and detailed instructions on collecting waste and microplastic samples from a local river or sea. Then, they report back their findings by uploading directly the data they collect on the project website.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Plastic Pirates campaign started in Germany in 2016 before being extended to Portugal and Slovenia.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe project now has 12 local EU partners on board: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Georgia, Greece, Hungary Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain. More than 5000 students participated in this sampling campaign in autumn 2022.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPut simply, \u2018there\u0027s no team of scientists who could conduct this work on that scale\u2019.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWorking alongside the public is valuable in other respects too: it has led to some important and unexpected outcomes. To make the experiment accessible to schools anywhere without having to rent a bus or travel a long way, they are free to chose any river, not specifying the size or whether it is one they think would be particularly polluted.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cfigure role=\u0022group\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cimg alt=\u0022Local rivers in Germany, like this one in the forest outside Berlin, in summers turn into inspection sites for school children who collect waste and microplastic for further inspection by researchers.\u0022 data-entity-type=\u0022file\u0022 data-entity-uuid=\u00222708aba6-71ed-4edc-be25-2d38632eaff5\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/hm\/IMCEUpload\/Dr.png\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cfigcaption class=\u0022tw-italic tw-mb-4\u0022\u003ELocal rivers in Germany, like this one in the forest outside Berlin, in summers turn into inspection sites for school children who collect waste and microplastic for further inspection by researchers.\u003C\/figcaption\u003E\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis means that the scientists involved started to receive results from much smaller rivers than expected, sometimes as little as two metres wide. As Tim explains, \u2018the most contaminated microplastic sample we got originated from a river so shallow that the school children could stand in it,\u2019 an important finding that he and his research team had not anticipated.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EValuable perspectives\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETim describes how, as a scientist used to working closely on detailed datasets for days at a time, working with schools and young people has helped him think constantly about the relevance of his work.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EBuilding new scientific knowledge about the health of our waters through this kind of work is crucial if we are to move towards a more sustainable and healthy future\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003E\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018When you work with school children, you have to surface all the time and be able to explain your work, and to rethink, also for me as a scientist, what am I doing here? Is that really relevant? How could I explain that to school children, but also to the public? Is this relevant for society?\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe value of bridging research with real-life issues is particularly important when it comes to plastic pollution. Everyone is aware that it is a major problem that needs action, but it is not always clear to children and younger students, , how they can make a difference. \u2018You cannot tell them to buy food that is twice as expensive because it comes without packaging,\u2019 Tim points out.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy involving young people in hands-on scientific research which goes on to be peer-reviewed and published, the children gain scientific literacy and learn about how to participate in investigations that tackle problems society is facing. Anecdotally, he mentioned that after participating, some students and teachers contacted his lab for advice on experiments they wanted to carry out themselves.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPollution-free waters are critical for the health of both citizens and planet. Building new scientific knowledge about the health of our waters through this kind of work is crucial - if we don\u2019t know what\u2019s wrong, we can\u2019t fix it.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EScience, research and innovation: our secret ally\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis research is part of the EU\u2019s efforts to discover new ways to prepare for climate change, and protect our oceans and waters. Together, EU countries can work more effectively, by pooling funding and expertise from around the world, coordinating international efforts, and benefitting from local knowhow.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThanks to EU investments, it is possible for international research collaboration to address challenges too big to be addressed by one country alone.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EJoin researchers on a mission to protect our planet and society, by sharing, liking and following the stories of #ResearchImpactEU.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/textarea\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \u003Cdiv id=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 class=\u0022ecl-help-block description\u0022\u003E\n Please copy the above code and embed it onto your website to republish.\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cinput autocomplete=\u0022off\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022form-nhawoo561ltv0po9imt2vsgozguvkwev2federw7viw\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_build_id\u0022 value=\u0022form-nhAwOO561ltV0pO9imT2vsGOZguvKWEV2fEDErw7viw\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003Cinput data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_id\u0022 value=\u0022modal_form_example_modal_form\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003C\/form\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E","dialogOptions":{"width":"800","modal":true,"title":"Republish this content"}}]