THE H2O21 WATER SUMMIT IS A WRAP!

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H2O21 WATER SUMMIT: Next Gen Together In Water

Youth from around the world will “dive deeply into” water at a pivotal time for the next generation’s future and our shared Blue Planet, and they will have an opportunity to win a prize meet in Hawai’i this summer!

H2O21 Water Summit will connect, educate, empower, and inspire youth leaders while engaging them in critical messaging for the world today.

Are you a youth leader in the age range of 13-25*? Register here to attend!

* If you are a youth leader in the age range of 9-12, please have a non-related adult email us at info@heirstoouroceans.org to recommend you as a participant.

This Summit is at no cost to any youth.

**PROGRAM* and STORY TELLING COMPETITION:**

-Virtual 2-hour meet-ups weekly for 4 consecutive weekend days (Saturday or Sunday, depending upon your time zone) in the following timezone groupings:

Time Zone Groupings

GROUP WAVE: 9am US PST/ 7am HST (Brazil 2pm – Nairobi 8pm)

GROUP TIDE: 12pm US PST/ 10am HST (US CST 2pm – Puerto Rico/Trinidad 4pm)

GROUP SURGE: 5pm US PST/ 3pm HST (US MST 6pm – Jakarta 8am the next day)

[India to join WAVE or SURGE]

-Independent exploration “in the field” in between weekly meet-ups

-The story-telling challenge may include video/film making, spoken word recorded, poetry or blog submitted, visual still art through photos.

-15 youth will win prizes** for their submitted stories in each of the following categories:

Most engaging
Most informative
Most revealing
Most creative
Most curious

* For more program information

click here.

** 5 youth from each age range — 13-17 yrs and 18-25 yrs — will win a trip to Hawai’i (Big Island) for H2OO’s Summit for Empowerment Action & Leadership (SEAL) summer 2021, for the first time ever held in Hawai’i and in H2OO-OF Partnership. The trip to Hawai’i in 2021 will be dependent upon ability to travel considering age and country of origin and any covid restrictions. 5 youth of the category of 9-12 yrs will also win prizes TBD.

REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED.

ALREADY REGISTERED? KEEP READING! ESSENTIAL INFORMATION FOLLOWS:

FIRST THINGS FIRST! GET ACCESS TO YOUR SCHEDULE AND ZOOM LINKS!

Follow these steps now, well ahead of the Summit.

Determine whether your location for the Summit is different from the address you listed in your registration. If it is a different time zone than what was stated in your registration, please contact Emily at emily.berglund@heirstoouroceans.org
All registrants should have received a NEXT STEPS H2O21 WATER SUMMIT email alerting you to communications modes and more and a PREPARING FOR H2O21 WATER SUMMIT email which includes your assigned timezone group and the password to enter your group’s private webpage. Reminder to please check regularly your email including junk and spam folders and contact Emily at emily.berglund@heirstoouroceans.org if you are unable to find the email. We are utilizing the email through which you registered to communicate with you.
With your group name in mind, you will access a private password-protected webpage. You can access your group’s page two ways: (1) click on the color-coded block below, or (2) head over to the menu bar on this page and click on “H2O21 Water Summit” and a drop-down menu will appear where you can click on your group’s name SURGE, TIDE, or WAVE.
To access the private page, type in the password that you received in the PREPARING FOR H2O21 WATER SUMMIT email. This important page contains steps to take now and information for during the Summit including your Zoom link to access the Summit.
Here is a list of the countries and territories in each timezone grouping.

GROUP SURGE
Asia – US MST
(US PST 5-7pm)
(Hawai’i 3-5pm)

Taiwan
Palau
New Zealand
Indonesia
Hong Kong
Guam
CNMI
Fiji
FSM
Canada (BC)
Hawai’i
Australia
US PST – 5pm

GROUP TIDE
US CST – USVI/Puerto Rico
(US PST 12-2pm)

Mexico
Peru
US EST
US CST
US PST – 12pm
Canada (Toronto)
USVI
Puerto Rico

GROUP WAVE
Brazil – East Africa
(US PST 9-11am)
(Hawai’i 7-9am)

Brazil
Cameroon
Gambia
Nigeria
Kenya
Uganda
Zimbabwe
France
Germany
England
Scotland
US PST – 9am

* India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Pakistan with option SURGE or WAVE times. Contact us at info@heirstoouroceans.org if you do not yet have an assigned group.

Click here to access a time zone converter.

Note, the Summit is available only to registrants who received notice that they are effectively registered and assigned a group.

SURGE

TIDE

WAVE

SUMMIT FACILITATORS & SPEAKERS

STAH ROSA POUTAI
SPEAKER. Stah Rosa Poutai, 15 years old, was born in Aotearoa (New Zealand) which is in the south Pacific Ocean not too far north from Antarctica. Her heritage is part Maori, part New Zealand European and she has grown up appreciating both cultures and learning her place within them. Stah lives in a food forest with her family that extends three generations. She was raised around the Moana (ocean) and her schooling has been based in the various environmental sciences and indigenous systems learning. Stah enjoys the adventurous feeling of discovering new things — diving and snorkeling, hiking in wilderness, rock climbing and any new experience within nature that brings adrenaline and new learning including jumping off the highest rock/cliffs and discovering new seaweeds! She hopes that all of humanity will connect to our shared waters and, together, envision a healthier, cleaner, and more connected future.
STAH ROSA POUTAI
SPEAKER. Stah Rosa Poutai, 15 years old, was born in Aotearoa (New Zealand) which is in the south Pacific Ocean not too far north from Antarctica. Her heritage is part…

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K’nek’nek’ Lowry
SPEAKER. K'nek'nek' Lowry is Indigenous descendant of Yurok, Mountain Maidu, and Pit River ancestry from his father, Skip Lowry, and has Great Lakes Indigenous roots from his mother. His name means "Heartbeat or Pulse of energy" in Yurok language. K'nek'nek' has grown up a part of ceremonial families in the Northern California Indigenous community, and has a passion for social and environmental justice. K'nek'nek' has attended multiple Dam Removal public engagements with local stakeholders, politicians, and Tribal representatives, and is on public record testifying regarding water diversion on the Trinity River in Northern California. K'nek'nek' is deeply connected to his indigenous heritage and to our Earth, and he is honored to be part of his family's legacy of Tribal leadership.
K’nek’nek’ Lowry
SPEAKER. K’nek’nek’ Lowry is Indigenous descendant of Yurok, Mountain Maidu, and Pit River ancestry from his father, Skip Lowry, and has Great Lakes Indigenous roots from his mother. His name…

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Dr. Ricardo Tapilatu
SPEAKER. Dr. Ricardo "Rick" Tapilatu is a scientist and has a range of experience as a field researcher, manager of a non-profit organization, and university lecturer. He is a faculty member in the Fisheries and Marine Science departments, teaching marine biology, ecology and conservation. He is also an active staff member in the University of Papua’s (UNIPA) post-graduate program, teaching and supervising Masters students in Environmental Science and Marine Resources and also Doctoral students of Environmental Science. Currently, Dr. Tapilatu is the head of the Research Centre of Pacific Marine Resources at UNIPA, Manokwari in Papua Barat Indonesia. He is a conservationist with a passion for all things related to the marine environment. Having lived by the ocean in multiple coastal cities in Papua Indonesia he has always been fascinated by nature and biodiversity and has dedicated his life to protecting marine wildlife and ecosystems. Dr. Tapilatu has spent more than 25 years working on conservation initiatives throughout the Bird’s Head Seascape (BHS), a global epicentre of marine biodiversity and megafauna in the Western Pacific region and also in Indonesia. Partnering with multiple research institutions, Dr. Tapilatu has been studying the ecology and conservation of marine megafauna in relation to both local and global dynamic processes. In 2018, he was awarded a Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation to focus on developing conservation strategies for understanding environmental factors of leatherback nesting beaches on the north coast of BHS, while mitigating the effects of global climate change.
Dr. Ricardo Tapilatu
SPEAKER. Dr. Ricardo “Rick” Tapilatu is a scientist and has a range of experience as a field researcher, manager of a non-profit organization, and university lecturer. He is a faculty…

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Roberto “Berto” Yekwam
SPEAKER. Roberto “Berto” Yekwam, in Jayapura, Papua Province, East Indonesia, spends his days with Papuan Voices, an organization that focuses on amplifying voices of indigenous peoples in Papua and making environmental documentary films. Papuan Voices also educates the indigenous community through film screenings so that they are better informed as they protect their forests, waters and other natural resources. Berto is active with the EcoNusa School of Eco Diplomacy (SED), a program from the EcoNusa foundation that views the importance of engaging young people in promoting ecological diversity, cultural values, and sustainability issues in Indonesia, especially in Papua. Due to Berto's expertise in making audiovisuals, he was selected to take part in the H2OO’s virtual Summit for Empowerment and Action Leadership (SEAL) in 2020 which focused on film making.
Roberto “Berto” Yekwam
SPEAKER. Roberto “Berto” Yekwam, in Jayapura, Papua Province, East Indonesia, spends his days with Papuan Voices, an organization that focuses on amplifying voices of indigenous peoples in Papua and making…

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Kahu M. Kalani Souza
FACILITATOR, SPEAKER. Kalani Souza is the Founding and current Director of the Olohana Foundation, a non-profit based on Hawaii’s Big Island since 2008. Olohana focuses on building community capacity, cohesiveness, resilience, and emergency preparedness around food, energy, water, and knowledge systems. He is an esteemed Kahu or keeper of wisdom and Hawaiian Elder who advocates for the weaving of traditional wisdom and cultural values with modern science, knowledge, and technology. Recognized locally, nationally, and internationally, he is a renowned practitioner of aloha and cross-cultural facilitator of Hawaiian spirituality. He is a mentor and resource who has lectured extensively on social justice through conflict resolution at the Spark Matsunaga Center for Peace and at the University of Hawaii at Manoa in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning. His native roots allow him a unique perspective of the collision of two worlds: one steeped in traditional culture and the other a juggernaut of new morality and changing economic and political persuasion. He serves as a cultural competency consultant for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Pacific Services Center of the U.S. Department of Commerce and a Coastal Community Resilience Trainer with FEMA Consortium member, the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center at the University of Hawaii, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Kalani was awarded the Aloha Global Ku Award at the Hawaii Global Breadfruit in 2016 Summit for his advocacy of low glycemic, gluten free, and high plant protein breadfruit to fight global diabetes, obesity, heart, and renal disease. Oceania leads the world with those health scourges.
Kahu M. Kalani Souza
FACILITATOR, SPEAKER. Kalani Souza is the Founding and current Director of the Olohana Foundation, a non-profit based on Hawaii’s Big Island since 2008. Olohana focuses on building community capacity, cohesiveness,…

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Cathy Guinovart
FACILITATOR. A youth leader, Cathy is a science communicator and informal educator native to Key Largo, Florida, and born to Cuban immigrants. She graduated from Florida International University (FIU) with a background in marine science, environmental sustainability, and entrepreneurship. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in biology at FIU. Her research focuses on environmental education throughout Yucatec Maya communities in Quintana Roo, Mexico. For the last seven years, she has worked with Florida International University's Aquarius Reef Base conducting science communication, education, administration, and outreach. She has also worked with other organizations including Pisces VI Deep-Sea Submarine, Mystic Aquarium, the National Park Service, the University of Rhode Island Inner Space Center, and Oceana. Cathy's mission is to inspire the next generation of seekers and solvers for our oceans, and she is effectively applying her skills in science communication, education, and outreach at H2OO as Youth Engagement Coordinator and Curriculum Consultant supporting its global chapters and assisting in developing a middle school curriculum. Cathy is also a Steering Committee member of H2OO’s newly-formed US Youth Advisory Council for the UN Ocean Decade.
Cathy Guinovart
FACILITATOR. A youth leader, Cathy is a science communicator and informal educator native to Key Largo, Florida, and born to Cuban immigrants. She graduated from Florida International University (FIU) with…

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Dr. Wendy F. Smythe
SPEAKER. Dr. Wendy F. Smythe is Alaska Native Haida from Hydaburg, Alaska. Her Haida name is K’ah Skaahluwaa (laughing lady), from the Xáadas (Haida) clan of Sdast’ aas (Fish egg house). Dr. Smythe is an Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) with a joint appointment in the Departments of American Indian Studies and Earth & Environmental Sciences. Prior to joining UMD she served as an Executive Branch as an American Association for the Advancement of Science, Science & Technology Policy Fellow hosted by the National Science Foundation (NSF) working across the Directorates for Education & Human Resources and Geoscience in the Division of Earth Science Systems. Dr. Smythe is a research geoscientist whose research focus is on examining microbial diversity, biogeochemistry, and biomineralization in metalliferious groundwater and marine ecosystems from deep-sea hydrothermal volcanoes to hydrothermal springs in Southeast Alaska and Yellowstone National Park and in examining environmental health and its impacts on Indigenous first foods. She is an Assistant Editor for the Journal of Geoscience Education. Dr. Smythe has partnered with her tribal community for over a decade coupling Traditional Knowledge with Geoscience to create culturally-aligned K-12 science curriculum. She serves on the Board of Directors for the tribal non-profit, Xáadas Kil Kuyáas Foundation, whose mission is to promote, preserve, and perpetuate the Northern Haida language. Through her work she seeks to increase the number of Native American/Alaska Native students represented in STEM disciplines to increase diversity and innovation and to empower the next generation of Native leaders.
Dr. Wendy F. Smythe
SPEAKER. Dr. Wendy F. Smythe is Alaska Native Haida from Hydaburg, Alaska. Her Haida name is K’ah Skaahluwaa (laughing lady), from the Xáadas (Haida) clan of Sdast’ aas (Fish egg…

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Kumu Ramsay Taum
SPEAKER. Recognized locally, nationally, and internationally for transformational leadership in sustainability, cultural, and place-based values integration into contemporary business models, Ramsay Taum advocates team building, strategic partnerships, community brilliance, and creative thinking. He is a recognized cultural resource, sought after keynote speaker, lecturer, trainer, and facilitator. He is especially effective working with Hawai‘i’s industries where he integrates Native Hawaiian cultural values and principles into contemporary business. Mentored and trained by respected kūpuna (elders), he is a practitioner and instructor of several Native Hawaiian practices: hoʻoponopono (stress release and mediation), lomi haha (body alignment), and Kaihewalu Lua (Hawaiian combat/battle art). He graduated from The Kamehameha Schools, attended the United States Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, and earned a B.S. degree in Public Administration from the University of Southern California. His eclectic background and experience in business, government, and community service makes him a valuable asset in the public and private sectors and has been instrumental in for-profit and non-profit business. Kumu Taum in 2009 was recognized and honored by the University of Hawaii as a Star of Oceania, an honor presented every three years to extraordinary individuals of Oceania for their work and service-related contributions to raising greater awareness of Oceania and its people to the nation, region, and world.
Kumu Ramsay Taum
SPEAKER. Recognized locally, nationally, and internationally for transformational leadership in sustainability, cultural, and place-based values integration into contemporary business models, Ramsay Taum advocates team building, strategic partnerships, community brilliance, and…

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Papalii Dr. Tusi Avegalio
SPEAKER.

Papalii Dr. Tusi Avegalio is Director of the Pacific Business Center Program (PBCP) and former Executive Director of the Honolulu Minority Business Enterprise Center (HMBEC) at the Shidler College of Business Administration, University of Hawaii-Manoa campus. Dr. Tusi has the unique distinction of being a recognized business, economic, and community development expert of Oceania, an academic, and is a ranking Pacific traditional leader from the Samoan Islands. He was bestowed the title of Papalii in 1980 as a senior heir to the Malietoa warrior king line of Samoa in Sapapalii village in the island of Savaii. He is the first Pacific Islander born and raised in Oceania to serve on the University of Hawaii College of Business Administration faculty as a business professor in 1989. Dr. Tusi has worked extensively throughout the Pacific in collaboration with traditional leaders and village councils of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia. He was raised in a social-cultural context that views the earth as an organic living entity rooted in regeneration, symbiosis, and synergy, a perspective that also embraces man’s kincentric relationship to nature based on balance, harmony, alofa (love), and respect. That perspective helps to reconcile the western mechanistic perspectives led by the industrial/machine paradigm with the organic/living paradigm of indigenous Oceania, a perspective he feels are the keys to effectively addressing Pacific and global challenges that take the best of both worlds and creating a third option with value added.

Papalii Dr. Tusi Avegalio
SPEAKER. Papalii Dr. Tusi Avegalio is Director of the Pacific Business Center Program (PBCP) and former Executive Director of the Honolulu Minority Business Enterprise Center (HMBEC) at the Shidler College…

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Dr. Wallace J. Nichols
SPEAKER. Dr. Wallace "J" Nichols is an entrepreneurial scientist, Blue Mind movement maker, bestselling author, marine biologist, Earth and idea explorer, wild water advocate, lecturer, and fun-loving Dad. He also likes turtles (a lot). Dr. Nichols collaborates tirelessly to create the new story of water and share it with the world; the vast cognitive, emotional, psychological, social, physical, and spiritual benefits that we can all derive from healthy waters and oceans throughout our lives. In 2017 Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama presented the Champion of Change Award at the World Oceans Festival to Dr. Nichols.
Dr. Wallace J. Nichols
SPEAKER. Dr. Wallace “J” Nichols is an entrepreneurial scientist, Blue Mind movement maker, bestselling author, marine biologist, Earth and idea explorer, wild water advocate, lecturer, and fun-loving Dad. He also…

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Veda Austin
SPEAKER. Veda Austin is a water researcher, public speaker, mother, artist and author. She has dedicated the last 8 years observing and photographing the life of water. Veda believes that water is fluid intelligence, observing itself through every living organism on the planet and in the Universe. Veda's primary area of focus is photographing water in its "state of creation", the space between liquid and ice. It is through her remarkable crystallographic photos that water reveals its awareness of not only creation, but thought and intention through imagery.
Veda Austin
SPEAKER. Veda Austin is a water researcher, public speaker, mother, artist and author. She has dedicated the last 8 years observing and photographing the life of water. Veda believes that…

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Skip Lowry
SPEAKER. Skip Lowry is a Northern California Indigenous descendant of Yurok, Mountain Maidu, and Pit River ancestry. He works for the California State Parks of Recreation, and he serves on the board of a local inter-faith /inter-Tribal community organizing board. Skip is honored to be a part of the legacy of Indigenous peoples leadership and serves to help create a better world for all, as he is also a proud father.
Skip Lowry
SPEAKER. Skip Lowry is a Northern California Indigenous descendant of Yurok, Mountain Maidu, and Pit River ancestry. He works for the California State Parks of Recreation, and he serves on…

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Jeremiah IronRoad
SPEAKER. Jeremiah IronRoad was raised on the Standing Rock Reservation in the US. In February 2016 he learned that the Dakota Access PipeLine (DAPL) was heading north of the Standing Rock Reservation. The DAPL is a 1,172-mile-long (1,886 km) underground oil pipeline that runs from the shale oil fields of the Bakken formation in northwest North Dakota and continues through South Dakota and Iowa to an oil terminal in Illinois. In April 2016 he witnessed people rising up against the DAPL for fear of it contaminating the essential river water as the DAPL pipes would carry 470,000 barrels per day and be one of the riskiest freshwater crossings by any pipeline in the world. Jeremiah went to join the camping in protest of the DAPL being built. Jeremiah and his family started to feed the people at the camp, then one day they stayed the night and didn't leave. Jeremiah, the Indigenous people of the lands, and Indigenous peoples around the world who joined in, fought against the DAPL. And they still are.
Jeremiah IronRoad
SPEAKER. Jeremiah IronRoad was raised on the Standing Rock Reservation in the US. In February 2016 he learned that the Dakota Access PipeLine (DAPL) was heading north of the Standing…

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Shreya Ramachandran
SPEAKER. Shreya Ramachandran is a 17 year old scientist, environmentalist and grey water recycler. She is the founder of the nonprofit The Grey Water Project which promotes the safe reuse of grey water and water conservation. Shreya started out by doing research to see if grey water could be reused for irrigation, and then started her nonprofit to advocate her cause. Her ultimate goal is to have grey water reuse become something everyone does. Shreya has won numerous awards including being a Top 20 Global Finalist at the Google Science Fair. She is a National Geographic Young Explorer, a recipient of the President’s Environmental Youth Award, and the winner of the Children’s Climate Prize 2019.
Shreya Ramachandran
SPEAKER. Shreya Ramachandran is a 17 year old scientist, environmentalist and grey water recycler. She is the founder of the nonprofit The Grey Water Project which promotes the safe reuse…

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