Turning Found Debris into Beautiful Designs: Repurposing Workshops with Scotian Shores
In May of this year, Scotian Shores teamed up with the Cliffs of Fundy Geopark to lead a massive cleanup effort on one of our most beautiful beaches in Advocate Harbour. Over the course of a three-day stretch, a staggering 4,800 pounds of debris was collected along a single shoreline! While the majority of that debris has been successfully diverted from landfills for recycling, what about the rest?
Will Bollwerk with rope found on Driftwood Beach
Angela Riley, owner and operator of Scotian Shores, is an Ocean Warrior who spends most of her waking hours taking action to clean up the incredible shorelines around Nova Scotia. Angela pairs this environmental drive with an incredible talent for design, creating beautiful, unique items strictly from debris found during her cleanups.
Over the course of hundreds of cleanup events, Angela has transformed marine debris into rope mats, drink coasters, wreaths, baskets, jewelry, sculptures, and much more. Now, she is returning to the Cliffs of Fundy to lead our community in doing the exact same thing with our own beach finds.
As part of our Debris to Design stewardship initiative, we will be hosting two upcoming workshops:
Monday, July 6 at 6:30 PM: Located at the newly renovated Three Sisters Centre in Eatonville, NS. This session is geared mostly towards adults, though children are welcome.
Tuesday, July 7 at 2:30 PM: Located at the Art Lab in Parrsboro, NS. This session is geared towards families with child-friendly projects, but is open to all.
The creations built during these sessions will lead up to our grand finale: a special community showcase hosted in partnership with Parrsboro Creative on August 1st! This showcase will celebrate our community's collective designs, and participants will even have a chance to win some fantastic prizes for their efforts.
Fish crated out of found plastics by Angela Riley
Found debris will be provided at both workshops, though participants are highly encouraged to bring along their own collected, clean debris. These workshops are being offered completely free of charge. Space is limited, so please secure your spot for either (or both) sessions by emailing community@fundygeopark.ca to receive the registration link.
To learn more and support our partners at Scotian Shores, follow them on social media (@ScotianShores) or sign up for their newsletter at
