Heirs To Our Ocean’s primary focus has always been to empower youth with skill-building, education, and connection opportunities. This ensures that the next generation of environmental leaders are prepared to take on the challenges that we are and will be facing in the future.

As a 17-year-old girl who finds the climate and humanitarian crises to be overwhelming and scary, I believe that providing youth with outlets to become empathetic leaders and truly have their voices amplified is crucial. Being in a leadership position within Heirs To Our Ocean has completely changed my life and perspective on the world. I have developed skills in public speaking, empathetic leadership, policy advocacy, critical thinking, effective communication, coordination and organization, writing and editing, and overall team-building. These are skills I would not have developed in the public school system.

Heirs To Our Ocean provides a way for youth to develop these skills through a real-world, passion-based application, making it much more impactful. I believe that this concept of education should be applied in the public school system so that youth can truly be prepared for the future they inherit.