Celebrating Hope During World Ocean Week
June 9, 2021

Featured artwork above: “Coral Care” by Hannaneh Tabei (age 17, Iran), 2020 Ocean Awareness Contest

If you couldn’t guess it from our name (which refers to the bow of a boat), we’re absolutely obsessed with the ocean, so World Ocean Week feels like a celebration! In that spirit, we wanted to showcase the beautiful and diverse ways in which our young artists are speaking up for our blue planet.

News about climate change and other environmental problems is usually filled with doom and gloom, so we wanted to look towards the future with hope and resilience rather than despair. By sharing works of art and words of encouragement from our Ocean Awareness Contest participants, we are acknowledging all the many ways people and communities are coming together to create change. These young creators have given us the spark needed to keep pushing forward, and we hope they will inspire you, too.

“Heroes” by Zanaiah Billups, 17, Georgia

“The thousands of youth protesting for our future and our planet’s in 2019 gave me hope and the power to enlist in this fight. We are in for the battles of our lives. We are the heroes who will save generations to come, and heroes must fight together.”
Zanaiah Billups

 

“Deep Hopes” by Katherine Xu, 16, Canada

“The future of our world is in the hands of our young. As we get older, we are constantly learning and adapting, much like a growing coral reef. In a world that seems to drown in darkness, we look to the future with faith and optimism.”
Katherine Xu

 

“Illustrating the Future” by Anika Bhagavatula, 17, Connecticut

“As the next generation, we learn about ways to limit our contributions to global warming—by reducing carbon emissions from driving cars, or eliminating pollutants like pesticides and household chemicals. With education on how we can make small changes in our lifestyle, we can work together towards an optimistic future.”
Anika Bhagavatula

 

“For What Could Be” by Joyce Chen, 16, Oregon

“While researching, the sheer amount of solutions and preventative actions I found was staggering; they ranged from blue carbon ecosystems to harnessing wave energy. Climate change solutions are certainly not in short supply.”
Joyce Chen

 

“Ocean League” by Lumina Zhang, Hannah You & Michelle Tan

“We have learned during our research in the climate crisis that hope is never really gone. Solutions are always a choice. The fact that humans are not giving up in spite of all that we have gone through gives us considerable hope.”
Lumina Zhang, Hannah You & Michelle Tan

 

“Beauty and the Deep” by Kaitlyn Ha, 14, California

“The large numbers of people, groups, organizations, and advocates that stand strong for the cause give me hope, as well as successful cleanups of the past. If we’ve done it before, we can move forward and do it again.”
Kaitlyn Ha

 

“30 Days of Hope” by Jasmine Rodman, 16, Canada

“I wanted to create something that would have a long-lasting impact, encouraging the viewer to think about the ocean and the climate crisis in relation to their daily life. While my piece only shows thirty reasons worth fighting for, there are so many more reasons to have hope.”
Jasmine Rodman

 

“Soaring Hope” by Jingyi Yang, 15, Washington

“According to a study in 2019 by Zerbini et al., the number of humpback whales in the South Atlantic has rebounded from the brink of extinction. Our environment can rebound too, if we want it to.”
Jingyi Yang

 

“Love Drought” by Ava Hardin, 17, Illinois

“Though we must continue to care for the ocean and land, there is hope knowing that, through drastic environmental events, the Earth has continued to grow and support life.”
Ava Hardin

 

Check out more student work in our Gallery.

Share News

Celebrating Hope During World Ocean Week

Leave a Comment