Reflection

Reflection

On a typical day in the summer, I was preparing to go to the beach and was putting my sunscreen on to protect my skin from the strong light rays from the sun. While putting the sunscreen on, I was searching for the climate heroes that I could be inspired from. One news headline caught my eyes, and it was “Young entrepreneur promotes reef-safe sunscreen.” I clicked on the news and immediately started brainstorming in my head after reading it. I realized that I was hurting ocean at the moment as I was trying to protect myself. This piece is inspired by Miel Sequiera-Holm, who established a company named Pura Vida that sells Palau’s local reef-safe sunscreen. I learned that chemicals like oxybenzone and octynoxate in sunscreens can damage coral reefs and contribute to coral bleaching. After observing Miel’s journey, I felt that small heroes from our surroundings that make practical changes are the genuine influencers that eventually lead our generation to preserve the ocean.