Youth Voices Rise Up During World Ocean Month
July 19, 2024By Sofia Tasoluk, 2024 Future Blue Youth Council member
Last month, I participated in Sea Youth Rise Up (SYRUP), a group founded to mobilize youth to have a voice in ocean issues. Our group spent a week in DC, honing in on our advocacy and communication skills to discuss ocean legislation with government officials, network with various leaders in the climate field, and attend the Capitol Hill Ocean Week (CHOW) conference.
Recognized by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), World Ocean Month takes place during June (with June 8th as World Ocean Day) and is a time to celebrate our oceans.
Although I had to leave the week early due to my High School graduation, I got a taste of SYRUP’s mission of empowering youth to have a voice in an “adult-dominated” space and the incredible group of people it encompassed.
Upon arriving in DC on Sunday, I met Laura Johnson, a SYRUP alum and now youth coordinator of the group. Laura recounted a story of her experience as a SYRUP youth and how one of her Congressional meetings at the Oval Office resulted in President Obama signing an executive order on the issue they were lobbying. Hearing about Laura’s experience impressed and empowered me that I could have that same impact during my next three days at Capitol Hill.
As more youth trickled in, I met the peers I would spend the next few days with. SYRUP hosted representatives from The Ocean Project, Big Blue & You, EarthEcho International, the New England Aquarium, Clean Miami Beach, and my organization, of course, Bow Seat.
Our week began with an advocacy training day, where we were first introduced to each of the attending organizations in SYRUP and got to know one another with icebreakers. Then, we listened to various speakers educate us on current ocean issues and topics, including deep seabed mining, the climate/ocean connection, and the Global Plastics Treaty. Finally, we learned about basic government operations and how to effectively advocate and lobby—to make a lasting impact.
We spent the rest of the afternoon and night using what we had learned to plan what we would say to our legislators. As a Pennsylvania resident, I was meeting with staffers from PA Senator Bob Casey and PA-1 Representative Brian Fitzpatrick’s offices. However, I was also sitting in on meetings in Vermont Senator Welch and Massachusetts Senator Markey’s offices. I focused on researching what issues my Congressmen cared about, so I could tailor my requests to their interests.
The next day came Capitol Hill Day—a chance to put what we previously learned about lobbying into practice. Having four meetings that day, I practically traveled to every corner of the Capitol building. It was fun to see some Congressmen’s doors decorated with sticky notes or Bernie Sanders in front of us in the line in the Senate building cafeteria! Although this wasn’t my first time lobbying at Capitol Hill, it was my first time setting my agenda as to what climate and ocean issues I wanted to discuss face-to-face with my Congressmen, and it was thrilling.
Overall, the day went smoothly. Some staffers listened more than others. Some diverged into conversations about what their Senator/Rep. was currently interested in. Some discussed how they supported the issue, but it was unfeasible to achieve in the current Congress. It made me sad to hear some of the concerns that the reality of making change in government is slow. But at the same time, each person I met congratulated me on even taking the step in traveling to DC to share what I was passionate about, and reassured me that change is more than possible—this is just the first step!
Later that night, SYRUP hosted a social gathering for all youth and leaders attending CHOW. It was an amazing opportunity to connect with my peers and meet new youth from programs other than SYRUP also in DC advocating for the same issues we had.
For my last day, I attended the official CHOW Conference which is an annual multi-day event held in DC by the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, inviting leaders from all backgrounds to discuss significant issues regarding our oceans. During Day One’s sessions, I got to hear from speakers such as actress Bailey Bass, Georgia Aquarium CEO Dr. Brian Davis, and National Marine Sanctuary Foundation CEO Joel Johnson discuss the future of climate issues. In addition to listening to the speakers, I also got to interact with the various ocean organizations hosting tables at the conference including NOAA, the Healthy Ocean Coalition, and NASA.
Unfortunately, this was the point at which I had to depart from my time at SYRUP. The others in the group had the incredible opportunity to meet with even more Congressmen and high-level groups such as the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) for the remainder of the week.
While my time was short, SYRUP emphasized the need to bring youth voices into the conversation. Attending CHOW firsthand, it became apparent to me that we, as the SYRUP delegation, were practically the only youth present at the conference. However, youth are the ones who must live with the effects of our oceans if they are not kept clean, which is why our voices are so important in this climate action space.
The youth at SYRUP were some of the most intelligent and passionate young people I have ever met, and I am so grateful that Bow Seat gave me the opportunity to meet such an amazing group. Participating in this gave me hope that youth can forge change in an ever-changing climate world. The only thing we must do is use our voice.