In 2017, after witnessing the degradation of the oceans while scuba diving and sailing, biochemist Dean Wenham decided to use his sailboat for good and contribute to microplastics research. To his surprise, the only technology available to sample microplastics - especially at depth - were heavy, expensive and impossible to deploy from a small sailboat. Not to mention, it was a manual and labour-intensive process.

Ethan Edson was a dynamic marine scientist and engineer attempting to overcome the same hurdles by developing a microplastics sensor at Northeastern University. ​Having collaborated on multiple microplastics research projects and spending a semester at sea using Neuston Nets, Ethan was familiar with the painstaking and limited processes of collecting and analyzing microplastics.

Dean connected with Ethan and the two immediately hit it off.  ​Understanding first-hand the challenges of studying microplastics, the two set up to combine Dean's science and business expertise with Ethan's engineering and marine science skills, in a shared passion to protect our oceans and waterways. Now, our growing team of problem solvers, innovators and explorers break barriers for scientists and citizens to study microplastics and environmental DNA to influence global change.