Growing up, Malte Niebelschuetz spent the first few days of every summer in a van with his family, journeying from Kassel, Germany, to the sea. Little did he know how those childhood summers filled with ocean spray and circling gulls would lead to a calling — a social enterprise that recycles plastic bottles into lovable stuffed toys designed to give kids a passion for protecting marine life. His full circle moment began when he moved to San Diego in 2011. “When I came here, I was blown away by the beauty of the coastline, but I was confused by all of the plastic garbage washing up on a supposedly clean California beach.” Malte began researching ocean pollution and connecting with local nonprofits. He discovered Patagonia, a company making high-end recreation apparel and gear from recycled plastic. If they could make useful goods from materials that would otherwise end up in landfills and oceans, so could he. But how, and what? As he reached for a pen, he saw a stuffed seagull he had been toting …