How can encourage our kids to have an ecological conscience, in early childhood ? This is our core question: it should be playful, universal, educative, emotional and iconic. A toy is probably the best medium to engage with kids. So we created Pollutoys, 8 toys, with a twist. These selected animals are the representatives of the most threatened marine lives. They look adorable, they’re soft and super cut. But when kids unzip their tummies, kids discover the detritus they eat and which kill them in the real world – straws, cups, plastic bags, soda cups and balloons.

It creates the interest and attention of kids on marine pollution and engage the conversation about the topic.Educative leaflets tell the story of each animal and provide advice to prevent marine pollution, in a kid-friendly way. We believe the interaction with teachers is part of the experience and engagement.

Each Pollutoy has a zipped pocket on the belly. The user can unzip the belly of the Pollutoy and can discover marine plastic debris and play with it. The Pollutoys are made for kids, they can easily play with the plush “debris” and put it back in the belly. There are 8 different Pollutoys: Darla the dolphin, Mark the shark, Pelle the pelican, Penny the penguin, Martha the manta ray, Turf the turtle, Waldo the walrus, Willy the whale.

The final product is currently at its final stage and available for schools purchase..

Above the views on social media, Pollutoys campaign demonstrated the tremendous interest and echo within the teacher and parent communities, across the globe.

We have received tens of emails from teachers and parents sharing the actions they initiated to provide educative tools for children. They acknowledged Sea Shepherd for creating innovative tools such as Pollutoys, to help them engage with kids. We were touched by the dedication and passion of these teachers and parents. It reveals also the potential for innovative tools like Pollutoys.