Video of a Mermaid Spotted on Bali Beach Goes Viral

The internet has been surprised by a perplexing video showing a mermaid laying on a Kuta Beach in Bali, the island that has been amongst the world's most famous tourist destinations.

Sharing the video and a number of photos that have been credited to Reuters' Dwi Duarsa, many social media users remembered the popular mermaid cartoon character named Ariel, which was featured by Disney's The Little Mermaid in 1989 for the first time.

However, an environmental activist named Laura has revealed that the photos and the video were part of an awareness campaign she was part of, to warn viewers of "plastic pollution" and the danger of using one-time plastic products that often end up in the sea, before it engulfs beaches in the monsoon season.

While Laura posed for the photos on the 4th of January, dozens of volunteers were working together to clean the beach from thousands of plastic items that have covered the sand.

In a follow-up to the campaign, Laura and other environmental activists called on people to refuse to use plastic products and to switch to other materials that are either recyclable or biodegradable.

Additionally, Laura's tweets highlighted the role played by major companies around the world, many of which are yet to play a positive role in the environmental crisis, such as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Unilever, Nestle, and others.