Stony Brook University writing and rhetoric lecturer Joseph Labriola is penning a new chapter in his academic career — that of a beach beautifier and ocean savior.
Stony Brook University writing and rhetoric professor Joseph Labriola with some of the tennis balls he found on a beach cleanup. Photo by John Griffin.
And we’re not talking a lonely figure combing the shores of Long Island in a one-man war against pollutants. There’s safety and solidarity in numbers for Labriola, who founded the Long Island North Shore Beach Cleaners group, created a beach waste art installation at the Stony Brook Village Center and has even given a TEDx talk on the subject of ocean plastic pollution and environmental advocacy.
He announced his new partnership with Wilson — the tennis company — to recycle the balls he finds on beach cleans. Wilson actually reached out to him after seeing his YouTube channel, where he documents some of the beach trash he found.
Wilson, excited to help in Labriola’s efforts to bring awareness to tennis ball ocean pollution, offered to donate recycling bins for his crusade.
“This work is vital in removing synthetic polymers and toxic chemicals from marine environments,” Labriola said.
His log follows:
- Day One: Collected 180 tennis balls from McAllister County Park.
- Day Two: Collected 197 tennis balls from West Beach in Port Jefferson, NY.
- Day Three (Planned): Return to McAllister County Park.
- Day Four (Planned): Will host a beach clean event in the near-future where I announce ahead of time for other beachgoers to collect and save tennis balls to then drop off for my bin — culminating in my 1,000 tennis ball collection challenge.
“Moving forward, I am excited to record several upcoming YouTube videos chronicling this project’s progress. While these efforts are just another small step in curbing ocean pollution, it is a fantastic initiative to shift our energy and conversations in the right direction via partnerships with big business — one ball at a time,” said Labriola.
Read the full story: https://news.stonybrook.edu/university/saving-the-oceans-one-tennis-ball-at-a-time/