A lover of the natural world, and of working with children, Eden Voebel found herself working for the Dungeness River Nature Center in Sequim as an environmental educator. Voebel — along with many of her peers — is worried about the natural status of the world.

“There’s a lot of climate anxiety,” she said. “What can we personally do to offset everything that’s happening?”

Voebel and the staff at the Dungeness River Nature Center will be hosting a workshop on building “eco-bricks” — building blocks of unrecyclable plastic that are all sorts of sustainable building projects as well as as ponds and sculptural art — from 1-2 p.m. on Friday, July 19, in the Cedar Hat Classroom at the center, 1943 W. Hendrickson Road.

Sequim Gazette photo by Elijah Sussman / Environmental educator Jordan Higgins, left, and education manager Montana Napier demonstrate eco-brick building process at Dungeness River Nature Center in late June.

The event is free and open to the public. The workshop is a part of a summer long waste collection and repurposing program.

“I know that eco-bricks aren’t a huge thing, but they they are helping,” Voebel said. “I feel like I’m doing something for my part to limit plastic waste, as an educator and a participant.”

Eco-bricks are made by filling plastic bottles with strips of plastic, which is then compressed tightly using a small piece of wooden dowel, or some other fitting tool.

Sequim Gazette photo by Elijah Sussman / Eden Voebel demonstrates plastic compression for eco-brick on June 26.

In addition to the workshop hosted by Voebel and the nature centers staff, the center will be receiving donated eco-bricks through August 7.

Upon completion of the summer project, organizers will bring any donated bricks to an eco-brick project happening on Bainbridge Island.

“It’s not good to have the plastic in the watershed,” said Montana Napier, the education manager at the Dungeness River Nature Center.

Sequim Gazette photo by Elijah Sussman / Ruby Coulson washes plastics before use in eco-brick construction on June 26 at the Dungeness River Nature Center.

“The water shed leads to the ocean and in the ocean there’s a lot of deterioration that’s happening, and the production of micro-plastics. That’s getting into the food chain. Keeping it out of the watershed is important … [and] out of the animals that live in the ecosystem.”

Those interested in learning more about eco-bricks and waste management in the area are encouraged to visit dungenessrivercenter.org/news/category/2024-summer-eco-brick-project.