1 . A man from Ivory Coast has found a creative way to repurpose (稍加改动) footwear that washes up on the beach-he turns it into artwork.

Aristide Kouame is a 26-year-old artist. But he says no one would know this when they see him going around beach areas picking up flip-flops (人字拖) and other kinds of footwear. They probably think he is gathering the old objects to sell on the street. But Kouame has recognized the real value of such waste. He has created artworks from the material that can sell for up to $1,000. He cuts the rubber and plastic bottoms from the footwear into pieces and uses them to create largo collages (拼贴画).

“This is the rubbish people have thrown into the sea and the sea brings it back to us because it doesn’t want it,” Kouame told Reuters News Agency. He was collecting material from a beach in Abidjan, Ivory Coast’s economic and cultural capital. “I make art from used shoes. It’s a way to give Life to the objects that litter the beaches,” the artist explained.

Sitting on the floor of a narrow street, Kouame creates shapes, letters and faces with the rubber pieces he picked up on the beach. His method is not costly and does not harm the environment. Plastic and other waste-including large amounts of lost flip-flops-litter most city beaches in West Africa. The waste is thrown away in cities and carried out to sea. But a lot of it ends up on the beach later.

In just a few years, Kouame’s methods have caught the attention of Ivory Coast’s art establishment and his works have hung in galleries in Ivory Coast and in oilier countries. His works have included large portraits of civil rights and political leaders such as Nelson Mandela. Other pieces were created to draw attention to world problems, including climate change, COVID-19 and economic inequality.

The United Nations estimates that about 13 million tons of plastic waste is put into the world’s oceans each year. Two of Africa’s biggest waste producers, Ghana and Nigeria, share the same Atlantic coastal areas as the beach where Kouame searches for supplies. For his part, Kouame says he plans to keep collecting and creating. “My goal is to get people lo question the issue of their environment, in order to create a better life.”

It is reported that at present a city in Japan has a problem with graffiti(涂鸦). However, it is not the usual type of graffiti with paint from spray cans     1    (use) to write on walls. It is graffiti in sand.

Officials in the city of Tottori are asking tourists to give up     2     (write) messages and drawing pictures in the sand of its giant sand dunes (沙丘). The officials say the graffiti causes damage to the dunes,     3     destroys the pleasure others get in looking at the sand.

More than 3,300 cases of "sand graffiti"     4     (occur) at the tourist spot in the past decade. In January, two overseas tourists were ordered     5     (erase) a 25-meter-long message that read "Happy Birthday Natalie".

The Tottori Sand Dunes are famous throughout Japan     6     their natural beauty. They are the largest and longest sand dunes in the country and form part of     7     scenic coastal park on the sea of Japan coast. The biggest dune is 50 meters high.

The local government wants to improve tourists' understanding of the     8     (important) of the dunes. It will set up much     9     (many) signs in English, Chinese and Korean asking people to respect the dunes. A spokesman said, "We are concerned about whether the rules are     10     (complete) understood, and we want to continue to protect views of the beautiful sand dunes."