少女把舊漁網變成藝術品

河北 胡金瑩

當15歲的加拿大女孩娜塔莉·麥金托什了解到丟棄在海洋中的漁網會破壞海洋環境，甚至威脅海洋生命時，她決定做一些有意義的事情來引起人們對保護海洋的重視。 在家人的幫助下，她收集了廢棄的漁網，并努力把它們改造成富有創意的藝術品，并因此收入頗豐。 然而，這個女孩卻把所有的收益都捐給了慈善機構。

題材 體裁環保 記敘文 353 ★★★文章詞數 難度建議用時7分鐘

An Ontario teen is making waves by turning old fishing tools into new treasures. Since last year, Natalie McIntosh, 15, has been taking lost or deserted fishing nets and rope, and transforming them into rope art, mats, bowls, baskets and necklaces. She has also been donating all of the money that she got from her non-profit business, called Nautical Waters, to charity.

Last year, Natalie was working on an assignment for her science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) class. As part of the assignment, she started learning about ghost nets, which refer to the fishing nets that have been left or lost in the ocean by people who fish. “They have huge effects on our environment and they can even kill coral reefs and many animals,” said Natalie. “It seems that 46 percent of the Pacific garbage patch is covered with the ghost gear.” The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a huge collection of trash floating in the Pacific Ocean. Natalie told her mom she wanted to do something to help.

Supported by her mother, the teen got in touch with a handful of charities, including Emerald Sea Protection Society in British Columbia and Coastal Action in Nova Scotia. After getting some shipments of ghost nets and rope from those organizations, Natalie, with the help of her family,started turning the abandoned gear into new artworks which looked very vivid and creative. “We've made many things, such as rope art, mats, bowls, baskets, and we've made necklaces, which also use beach glass in them,” she said.

Natalie created an artwork called “Water”, with the intention of making people recall the red sand beaches on Prince Edward Island, turning from sandy red into wavy blue. Natalie then started selling her various artworks on Etsy. Many people showed great interest in her unique works and she earned a lot of money. However, the teen donated all of her profits to the charities that in turn donated some fishing supplies to her. Natalie said she hopes to continue her passion for ocean life, with plans to study marine biology in university.

Reading Check

1. Why did the young girl turn old fishing nets into artworks?

A. To raise money for the charity.

B. To set up a non-profit business.

C. To let people realize the influence of the ocean waste.

D. To create and collect special treasures.

2. What inspired the girl to do her project?

A. The homework for her course. B. A suggestion from her mother.

C. An idea from her science teacher. D. The water pollution in her community.

3. What contributes to the girl's success?

A. Her bravery. B. Her creativity.

C. Her confidence. D. Her independence.

4. Where is the text probably from?

A. An advertisement. B. A biology textbook.

C. A popular magazine. D. An environmental report.

Language Study

Theme-centered chunks

work on 從事；做

have huge effects on 對……有巨大的影響

be covered with 被……覆蓋

get in touch with 與……取得聯系

a handful of charities 一些慈善機構

with the help of 在……的幫助下

with the intention of 懷有……的意圖

show great interest in 對……非常感興趣

donate...to... 把……捐贈給……

Since last year, Natalie McIntosh, 15, has been taking lost or deserted fishing nets and rope, and transforming them into rope art, mats, bowls, baskets and necklaces. 從去年開始，15歲的娜塔莉·麥金托什就開始把遺失或廢棄的漁網和繩子改造成繩子藝術品、墊子、碗、籃子和項鏈。