DO YOU HAVE A STORY, IDEA OR SOLUTION THAT CAN HELP TO IMPROVE THE HEALTH OF OUR OCEAN?
Our ocean is in trouble.
Climate change, overfishing, coastal development and our pollution are each impacting ocean health.
Yet, the ocean provides over half our oxygen and regulates our climate. The ocean is what makes life on earth possible.
We need positive action for our ocean.
At Ocean Youth we know that youth have amazing stories and ideas to help save our ocean.
The Waves of Change Innovation Challenge is about collecting and amplifying those stories and solutions by youth, for the ocean.
We want to gather, support and amplify the next generation of oceanpreneurs and changemakers to create positive Waves of Change.
It all starts with you(th)!
SOLVING THE CHALLENGES OF WASTE, CLIMATE & OVERFISHING THROUGH…
ART
1. SHARE A STORY
Submit your short story with the theme of ‘ocean’ and you could end up in our ‘Youth of the Ocean’ Anthology to be published and sold to raise funds for youth-led marine conservation projects.
Maximum 2,000 words.
2. WRITE A SONG
You could end up sound tracking our podcast or video features showcasing our amazing youth-led stories and solutions for positive ocean action.
3. ART FOR THE OCEAN
Your ocean themed art could end up on our next piece of merchandise – T shirt, cards, phone covers etc to share amongst our ocean loving community. Promoted globally, your art will be featured across our networks to raise awareness and improve ocean health. Or submit your artwork/images for our ‘Youth of the Ocean’ Anthology.
4. DESIGN OUR NEXT SWIMWEAR LINE
Our dream is to create sustainable swimwear designed by youth for youth. If you’re a budding young designer that has the same dream, submit your design and let’s collab!
ADVOCACY
WE NEED AN ARMY OF GRETAS!
Greta Thunberg changed the world. But she didn’t know when she started that it would go that way.
Her regular Friday school strike for climate had one participant, for the longest time. But Greta’s belief that she had to be the change she wished to see, her conviction of doing something rather than nothing, and her regular action is what started to get attention.
Soon one or two more students starting joinng her. Then more. Then media started following her story. Then the invitations from leaders started to come. And the rest is history.
Advocacy, speaking out to those that make decisions on our behalf is a key component of democracy. And at Ocean Youth, we know that when youth speak, business and government leaders listen. That’s why we want to hear from youth advocates so we can help amplify those voices and make positive Waves of Change for our ocean.
If this is you, then we want to help you amplify your voice for positive change.
Send us a 2 – 3 minute video of your idea or current advocacy project.
INNOVATION
HAVE YOU GOT AN IDEA THAT WILL HELP OUR OCEAN?
Innovation is about creating solutions to problems. At Ocean Youth we know that youth are able to see the challenges facing our planet and have the creative thinking to be able to solve them. Some of the ideas that our Ocean Youth Ambassadors & youth in the ocean innovation network have come up with include:
- Creating packaging from prawn shells
- Creating pens from recycled plastic
- Creating home aquarium equipment and furniture from 3D printed recycled plastic
- Creating water bottle filters from coconut husk
- Creating a student voice network to build skills in advocacy and leadership
- Creating a social media news hub for under-promoted ocean stories.
Now is the time to hone your critical thinking and problem solving skills to create solutions that will restore the health of ocean.We have an extensive ecosystem of people that can help you take your ideas to the next level.
GUIDELINES FOR WAVES OF CHANGE INNOVATION SUBMISSIONS
ADVOCACY
Advocacy is using your voice for change. Whether you are advocating for your family to eat less meat, your peers to stop littering or sign a petition, your school to adopt renewable energy, or your community more widely, you are creating huge Waves of Change. Ocean Youth can help to amplify your voice across our growing and increasingly global network.
No matter how small you think your campaign is, we invite you to share your advocacy project or the campaign you would like to create to help our ocean.
Submit your campaign via a Google doc as a .doc file with introduction and the impact you’re aiming for. Ideally you will include a short 1 – 2 minute video describing your campaign. Both the doc and the video file can be uploaded to the submission form via the link below.
ART
1. STORIES
Selected short stories of up to 1,000 words, will be collated for our Youth of the Ocean: an anthology.
Stories must have ocean as a core theme and can be fiction or non-fiction. Written work can be submitted on a Google Doc as a .doc, with spelling & grammar checked.
Include word count in brackets next to your title along with the name of author. We anticipate creating the anthology of youth ocean stories as a fundraising tool for marine conservation projects nominated by our youth community.
Your work will be fully acknowledged in all promotions. If your story is chosen for the anthology you will receive an Ocean Youth Ambassador Certificate of Publication as well as a written reference to support your portfolio.
2. MUSIC
Your music could end up soundtracking our videos, podcasts and other exciting initiatives in the pipeline. Songs can be uploaded to our drive as an MP4. Be sure to include song/music title, writer/s + a paragraph about what your song is about and what inspired you. We can’t wait to hear it and share it!
3. ART & IMAGES
Your art could adorn our next line of T-shirts, reusable bags and coffee cups, Christmas + birthday card packs & other merchandise lines we develop as fundraisers for Ocean Youth’s work. Art, illustrations and images will also be selected to complement the short stories in our Youth of the Ocean: an anthology. If your art/image is chosen for the anthology you will receive an Ocean Youth Ambassador Certificate of Publication as well as a written reference to support your portfolio.
Send the highest resolution version of your work as it may be promoted in a range of media within and across our networks.
4. SWIMWEAR DESIGN
Our dream is to create a sustainable swimwear line for youth, designed by youth. We know that this is a big dream, but a 1,000km journey starts by taking the first step. And we’re inviting you to take this first big step with us through your designs. If you’re a budding young designer who would like to collaborate with us contact us at hello@oceanyouth.org.
INNOVATION
No matter how small or developed, your innovative solution might be the start of your Wave of Change for ocean health. Whether it’s creating a more sustainable product to replace a destructive or polluting version, or creating opportunities for new thinking and action, we invite you to share it for even greater impact. Ocean Youth is a growing network of support and expertise that can help to take your ideas to the next level.
Use the submission form via the link below to tell us about your innovation for positive ocean action.
OUR WAVES OF CHANGE INNOVATION PARTNERS
