14 DAY TRIAL // A British artist and eco-pioneer has designed and built an amazing green island made of old plastic bottles near a beach in Mexico.
The artificial island, called Joyxee Island, is kept afloat by more than 150,000 plastic bottles bundled into mesh sacks and is located in the waters of Isla Mujeres, on the Caribbean coast of Mexico. It was built in late 2007 and 2008 by Richard “Rishi” Sowa, a former carpenter who decided to quit his job to fully dedicate himself to art.
According to Green Travel Life, Joyxee Island, or Spiral Island II, is Sowa’s second artificial island, as he built his first one in 1998 near Puerto Aventuras, Cancun, but was destroyed by the Hurricane Emily in 2005.
Measuring 82 feet (25 meters) in diameter, Rishi’s new floating recycled island is built on a structure of plywood and bamboo, and features three beaches, a beautiful three-story house, two ponds, a solar-powered waterfall and a small river. It is situated in a lagoon that offers protection from bad weather, and different species of plants and mangroves that are growing on the island provide stability and help keep everything together.
A small boat that also floats on over 1,000 recycled plastic bottles provides access to the mesmerizing green paradise on the island. Volunteers helped Rishi finish his project and the artist says he is still continuing to make improvements to the island.
Below you can watch a video in which Richard Sowa speaks about his green island.
