Yahoo Finance Migrants' Abandoned Life Vests Turned Into Cash
They have become a symbol of the refugee crisis, but now the mountains of life jackets discarded on Greek islands are being put to good use.
Two enterprising Americans are turning the abandoned life vests into a money-making initiative to raise funds for those fleeing countries like war-torn Syria.
Last November, Xander Schultz, 30, and fiancee Zoe Pappis, 26, were holidaying in Europe when they decided to volunteer on the island of Lesbos to help some of the thousands of refugees arriving on people smuggler boats from Turkey.
Seeing the life jackets piling up on beaches and roadsides they came up with the idea of "Zoe Bands", unisex bracelets created from the vests the refugees had worn during their dangerous journey across the Aegean Sea.
All profits from sales go towards providing refugees with basic necessities like clothing and food.
The bands are not named after the founder Zoe, but rather the Greek word "Zoe" which means "life".
Xander Schultz told Sky News: "We want the bands to humanise the statistics and create more empathy. There's been some ignorance but overall the reaction has been really positive.
"Hopefully Zoe Bands can help spread compassion for the refugees.
"Each life vest was put on by refugees knowing they could die over the next few hours and they still decided to cross that stretch of water.
"That's how bad it is for them back home. That is how much they need our help.
"These bands can act as conversation starters and create more empathy for them."
The bands are manufactured on Lesbos by locals, and all aid is purchased locally in order to help the island's economy which has suffered since the crisis.
"We employ a few local Greek men to clean up the beaches of Lesbos. We employ five local seamstresses who wash the vests and cut the material to make the bands," Zoe Pappis said.
The couple returned to Lesbos in March to develop packaging and oversee the wristband production.
The fundraisers hope Zoe Bands will raise tens of thousands of dollars through the help of fundraising website Indiegogo.
The orange Zoe Band sells from $20.
More than one million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and beyond reached the continent last year.
Just over 340 people have so far been returned to Turkey from Greece since a deal was agreed with the European Union last month.
Under the agreement, those arriving on Greek islands from 20 March onwards are detained and face deportation unless they successfully apply for asylum in Greece.
In return, the EU will take in thousands of Syrian refugees directly from Turkey and reward Ankara with more money, early visa-free travel for its citizens and progress in negotiations to join the bloc.
