FABRIC OF THE STORY ECOMASK

By Christian Shane Dougherty

Tell us a bit about your motivation to invent such a mask.

My name is Laura Robichaux. I am originally from New Orleans in the United States. However, for the last five years, I have been based in Germany working in the automotive industry. I have always wanted to start a values driven business to prove that real sustainability does not have to come with a green tax. To me, sustainability means creating value for all stakeholders where the planet is also a stakeholder.

The idea to create a sustainable face mask came about during the summer of 2020 in response to the proliferation of single use personal protective equipment related to COVID-19. I had this moment when I realized every single body of water I had been near since the pandemic started had a face mask floating around in it or washed up on the shore. I started looking for a sustainable mask to use for myself. When I could not find one that did not have tradeoffs for either people or the planet, I realized I needed to make one.

Our vision is to make the most sustainable and effective reusable face masks on the market to end mask trash. We vow to do this while maintaining conscious and ethical business practices and by donating 1% of proceeds from all purchases to the Healthy Seas organization. Healthy Seas is an environmental charity working in various European countries (North, Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas) and in New Zealand (Pacific Ocean), to collect waste fishing nets in collaboration with fishermen and volunteer divers. These nets pose a severe threat to marine life if abandoned or lost at sea. The nets collected are ultimately regenerated by Aquafil, together with other nylon waste, to produce ECONYL® yarn used in a variety of sustainable products, like the Ecomask face masks. From where do you draw your inspiration?

People who take risks, chase dreams and are brave enough to show the world who they are. And, the incredible work of the volunteer divers who work with Healthy Seas to pull discarded fishing gear from the ocean to protect and save marine life.

You use multi-layering technology. How does this compare to the typical mask one purchases online or elsewhere?

Lara Robichaux, Founder of Ecomask

This is such a good question. There is so much confusion in the market about different types of masks and which are best.

Surgical masks like the ones doctors wear are fluid resistant and protect the others from the wearer’s respiratory emissions. They are loose fitting which means that air can flow around the filter, and they are not built to protect the wearer.

Respirators (like an N95 mask) on the other hand reduce the wearer’s exposure to airborne particles including small particle aerosols and large fluid droplets. These are tight fitting.

To make Ecomask, we used a high-quality filter technology (FFP2) which is meant to protect the wearer and others from which they might come into contact.

A good filter is important because the particle size of bacteria and viruses are so small that they can just pass through a lot of materials like cotton. That is true even if there are multiple layers of cotton. We also elected not to make a replaceable filter because in doing so, it makes the filter less effective. Our filter is sewn into place so air cannot get around it.

To make it more interesting, there are different kinds of highquality filters - some are washable, and some are not. We made sure to use one that is washable so it can be used multiple times.

One other thing to watch out for in mask design is a seam down the middle of the face and mouth. This seam creates tiny holes which do not seem big to us but to invisible particles a seam is like a superhighway and reduces the filter effectiveness.

Any predictions for 2021 regarding awareness and sustainability?

We can look around us and see that people care more about these topics than they did five years ago. There is more awareness and education every day. Sustainable businesses which are a source of good are here to stay and will help us usher in the changes we need to see for the wellbeing of all of humanity and our home on earth. I am extremely excited to see the disruption these businesses have had on traditional industries such as the automotive industry, dairy and animal farming. They are the proof that large scale change is possible. https://ecomask.co https://www.healthyseas.org