Fionn Fereira

Fionn Fereira

• Scientist, inventor, and ecological sustainability advocate
• Wants to clean up the environment by removing microplastics from water and to contribute to achieving a more circular economy
• Grand Prize Global Winner Google Science Fair & at The National Geographic Young Explorer Award in 2021
• Founder of Fionn & Co. LLC which tests and builds devices for large-scale microplastic removal

Fionn Ferreira has a great passion for life. He wants to clean up the environment by removing microplastics from water and contribute to achieving a more circular economy

A student, scientist, and anti-plastic innovator, Fionn Ferreira focuses on solving the plastic pollution crisis. His desire stems from the amount of plastic he saw washing up on the shore while kayaking the coasts of Ireland with his dog. This has led to several inventions regarding plastic pollution collection with a primary focus on the threat posed by microplastics.

After several initial attempts at building devices to remove plastic particles from water, Fionn Ferreira came up with a magnetic-based method that removes these particles from water with high extraction rates. Not only is his invention a fast way of doing so, but also non-harmful and clean.

His invention left scientists in awe at several science fairs. It resulted in his being named the Grand Prize Global Winner at the 2019 Google Science Fair. He was also named National Geographic Young Explorer in the earlier half of 2021, named a Forbes 30 Under 30 for Science and Healthcare, and is an ambassador for The AAT Project.

In 2020, Fionn Ferreira founded Fionn & Co. LLC. The company uses his method to test prototypes and build a device for efficient microplastic removals from water on a large scale. He has also commissioned Stress Engineering to fine-tune, build, and test his designs. This was made possible by means of grant funding from Robert Downey Jr’s Footprint Coalition.

Besides his studies and inventing, Fionn Ferreira features in a Global HP Commercial, is creating and developing several children’s television series with a network, and is writing his first children’s book for a well-known publisher.

Fionn Ferreira – Keynote Speaker Circular Economy & Sustainability

Although still a student, Fionn Ferreira has become a sought-after global speaker. He has addressed the World Economic Forum, Smithsonian’s Earth Optimism Summit, the European Commission Research Conference, and many other conferences and invested in business enterprises.

Born in Ireland Fionn is currently based in The Netherlands, Fionn Ferreira presents fluently in five languages.

Speaking Topics

• Keeping a child-like mindset to combat challenges: Playing as an adult may seem silly, unproductive, or even a luxury. He discusses how imaginative exploration enlarges our perception and understanding of the world. By drawing on experiences of the invention and its link to the state of flow he shares stories that associate many separate concepts in an unconventional way to ultimately design a new method for the removal of microplastic particles from water.
• Plastics, Circular Economy & Sustainability: Fionn discusses how bioplastics, recycling, re-use, and microplastics all add complexity to the efforts to solve the plastics puzzle. He highlights the importance of circularity designed into products from the beginning and how you cannot blame the plastic problem on the consumer. His experience as a World Economic Forum Global Plastic Action Partnership Plastic Action Champion has given him insight into the steps we need to take to bring about the transition to a more sustainable world.
• Re-inventing the wheel? Fionn believes that creativity is what is key to coming up with exciting ideas. Sometimes ideas require re-inventing-the-wheel rethinking a fundamental concept. Fionn illustrates that art is as important in science as chemical formulas and numbers.
• Educate to create: Fionn believes that one learns just as much from failed attempts as successful ones. This talk embodies the importance of not being afraid to try every idea, no matter how big or small.
• Cooking with science: In addition to chemistry, another one of Fionn’s passions is applying his knowledge of science to cooking. He will share gastronomic experiments and throw in a few mythbusters ultimately resulting in amazing gourmet meals. Prepare to be amazed as a whole wealth of knowledge is presented to you on food items and topics you may have never even raised an eyebrow at.
• Stargazing and the science of the universe: Fionn spent a number of years curating the only planetarium in Ireland. He loves speaking about the vast universe and if there is life somewhere out there. Join Fionn as he discusses how space and the universe encourage him in his day to day work and ponder the beauty that is space
• Re-inventing the wheel? Fionn believes that creativity is what is key to coming up with exciting ideas. Sometimes ideas require re-inventing-the-wheel rethinking a fundamental concept. Fionn illustrates that art is as important in science as chemical formulas and numbers.
  Educate to create: Fionn believes that one learns just as much from failed attempts as successful ones. This talk embodies the importance of not being afraid to try every idea, no matter how big or small.