5 Gyres Institute is one of the most important voices in the global plastic-pollution movement. Founded in 2009, 5 Gyres has conducted more than 19 expeditions across all five major ocean gyres, producing some of the most-cited science on the scope of plastic pollution worldwide.
Why "5 Gyres"?
The five sub-tropical ocean gyres are the world's largest accumulation zones for floating plastic debris: the North Pacific (home of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch), South Pacific, North Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Indian Ocean gyres. Each is a slow-moving, current-driven swirl that traps drifting plastic. Read about all five gyres in detail.
What 5 Gyres has contributed
- The first global estimate of microplastics in the ocean. Their 2014 paper in PLOS ONE estimated 5.25 trillion plastic particles weighing 268,940 tons floating in the ocean.
- The microbead campaign. 5 Gyres' research helped drive the U.S. Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015, which banned plastic microbeads in personal care products.
- Citizen science programs. Their TrawlShare program has trained thousands of volunteers to sample plastic from waterways worldwide.
- Plastic Free Challenge. An annual public challenge encouraging individuals to reduce their plastic footprint.
How 5 Gyres relates to For A Strawless Ocean
5 Gyres' research underpins the science behind the For A Strawless Ocean campaign. Their data on the prevalence of straws in beach cleanups, the breakdown of plastics into microplastics, and the cumulative scale of plastic in the ocean is what makes the case for refusing single-use plastic straws compelling. The two organizations have collaborated on outreach, education, and advocacy around #BreakFreeFromPlastic.
Learn more
Visit 5gyres.org for their research, expeditions, and ways to get involved.