Looking back at 2022, I am humbled by the incredible work the SOA team brought to life. It was a record-breaking fundraising year, which allowed us to accelerate dozens of new ocean solutions that you can read about in this report. We now have more than 7,000 young ocean leaders around the world, and 82 hubs across 77 countries. The team came together for the first time since the pandemic at the United Nations Ocean Conference in Portugal, where we proudly cohosted the Youth and Innovation Forum. Many of us met in person for the very first time on the beautiful beach in Cascais, where we had the honor to watch more than 120 youth devise real-world solutions to some of the greatest threats facing our ocean – and even enjoyed a surprise appearance from actor and activist Jason Momoa! From our realized impact to strengthening internal bonds, it was truly SOA's greatest year yet.
Now looking forward to 2023, it is clear we still have so much work to do. We are bracing for the defining climate fight of our generation – deep-seabed mining. SOA has been campaigning vigorously against this destructive practice for more than two years, and recently delivered a collaborative petition with more than a quarter of a million signatures calling for a moratorium. The International Seabed Authority is set to vote on whether to allow the mining of the deep sea in July, and if approved, it could be open for business that very month. In the history of the destruction of our planet, our generation has never been present to prevent detrimental actions from taking place. This is why we are spending so much of our time restoring, regenerating, and rehabilitating. But now, we can prevent this horrific practice from ever starting. We cannot afford to stay silent and do nothing. We cannot afford to stay on the sidelines and watch those in power determine our fate and our future. This is why we must urgently continue to build our network of young ocean leaders – and ocean allies of all ages. It is critical we have a voice in world-altering decisions, as it is our future most at stake.
While we know we have our work cut out for us, I hope you are as inspired and buoyed by this report as I am. The climate crisis cannot be solved by one person. But together, we are creating meaningful change to protect our planet, our future, and each other.
Daniela V. Fernandez
Founder and CEO,
Sustainable Ocean Alliance
Our global network of people and solutions are making a measurable impact. These numbers are cumulative through December 31, 2022.
Sustainable Ocean Alliance takes a unique approach to solving key ocean challenges. By allocating funding across nonprofit grants, market-driven startup investments, and local initiatives, we support a diverse community of ocean solutions. This unique strategy has led to SOA supporting 266 ocean solutions across 77 countries over the past 5 years.
Through collaboration with ocean impact entrepreneurs, investors, philanthropists, and scientific advisors, we have developed a methodology for organizing and collecting impact data across five key ocean areas. Each solution represented in this report falls into one or more of these impact categories. We hope that this report will encourage funders to allocate more resources towards solving these ocean challenges.
—
Craig Dudenhoeffer
Chief Impact & Investments Officer
2022 IMPACT:
1,143 metric tons of CO2 avoided or removed
Greenhouse gasses (GHGs) absorb infrared solar radiation and trap heat in the atmosphere, resulting in global warming, climate change, increased ocean temperatures and sea level rise. CO2, one of the most common GHGs, is absorbed by the ocean, which in turn, causes ocean acidification. In 2022, 36.8 gigatons of carbon (CO2) were emitted globally.
By supporting solutions that remove or avoid GHG emissions, or that sequester and store CO2, SOA can help reduce these harmful environmental effects and improve the health of our ocean.
2022 IMPACT:
1,794 metric tons of waste removed, avoided, or recycled
(including 446 metric tons of plastic)
Every year, 11 million metric tons of plastic enter our marine environments, killing marine life, destroying sensitive ocean ecosystems, and polluting food sources that support livelihoods around the world.
SOA champions solutions that remove these harmful pollutants from the ocean or avoid their use altogether. Their work in turn helps to build the circular economy, which promotes the extension of product lifecycles through recycling and upcycling, and aims to decrease solid waste and pollution.
2022 IMPACT:
Marine and coastal ecosystems protect crucial biodiversity, and provide services vital to our existence. These areas include coral reefs, seagrass meadows, mangrove forests, salt marshes, and the deep seabed. Together, they serve as critical areas for wildlife reproduction, nurseries for marine organisms, and landscapes for carbon capture.
Solutions in this category measure impact by reporting the area of marine habitat they restore or protect. In 2022, this included establishing 3,573 square meters of coral reef, and planting 19,425 mangroves. This category also includes 11 projects related to local education and advocacy around the detrimental impacts of deep-seabed mining.
2022 IMPACT:
56.9 metric tons of Blue Foods Produced
55 metric tons of bycatch avoided
More than three billion people rely on seafood as a primary source of protein, and 260 million depend on fisheries for their livelihoods. Overfishing, and illegal and industrial practices are killing wildlife and destroying wild places. At the same time, aquaculture seeks to meet demand and reduce the burden on the ocean, but can result in high levels of pollution if not performed sustainably.
Emerging alternatives to any form of aquatically-derived animal protein are plant-based and new methods of cellular agriculture. SOA supports solutions that produce sustainable Blue Foods and those that help move our food systems towards a sustainable future.
2022 IMPACT:
3,149 People Trained or Educated
156 Reports & Publications
296 Workshops
Ocean data, literacy, and research projects help us build the knowledge base we need to activate all other ocean solutions. While there may not be a singular category to measure their impact, in 2022 we have elected to report on education, training, and knowledge sharing.
The majority of projects in this category represent grants to SOA's global community, via Hubs. Through hosting over 150 events and activations around the world, their work has engaged over 200,000 people. These projects inform policy, drive innovation, and equip new audiences with the knowledge they need to become change agents in their own right.
Grant
Ghana
Africa
Pollution: Waste Reduction & Circular Use
Richmond Quarcoo
Ghana is one of the top 10 most polluted countries in the world. This project addresses marine pollution by organizing two beach clean-ups on the turtle nesting areas of Nungua in collaboration with the NGO Plastic Punch. These two events will be edutainment and a citizen science approach for data.
Learn MoreGrant
Peru
South America
Ocean Data, Literacy & Research
Stefanie Torres La Torre
This program trains “Ocean Watchers” in the youth communities of Peru most affected by the February 2022 oil spill. Through presentations, workshops, and dialogues facilitated by experts, youth, artisanal fishermen, leaders, and organizers are given the skills necessary to increase ocean awareness and emergency preparedness in the face of increased threats from climate change and extractive industries.
Learn MoreGrant
Australia
Oceania
Ocean Data, Literacy & Research
Heidi Dumesich
SOA Australia is a new SOA Hub, co-founded by the former leaders of SOA University of Sydney. The mission of SOA Australia is to be the overarching hub to support all of the hubs across Australia as well as be their space for individuals and companies to learn about the importance of the ocean. Heidi and Bella brought SOA to Australia because they are aware of the ocean issues in Australia and aim to show the importance of the oceans to young professionals, and to connect them with industry leaders.
Learn MoreGrant
Thailand
Asia
Pollution: Waste Reduction & Circular Use
Chanintorn Pensute
Chiang Mai University students collected 20kg of waste from the Chiang Mai - Mae Kha Canal. Their work was filmed for the production of a short documentary.
Learn MoreGrant
Mexico
North America
Pollution: Waste Reduction & Circular Use
Silda Valeria Ortiz Sosa
This organization collects debris from the beaches of Southern Quinana Roo in the village of Mahahual, MX and upcycles the waste into jewelry and other arts and crafts. As part of this grant, they will select six youth from the community to participate in the process from start to finish: participating in cleanups, shredding and repurposing of the waste, creation of salable art, and marketing of the project and artifacts through social media and web channels.
Learn MoreGrant
Ecuador
South America
Ecosystems and Species: Preservation & Restoration
Kerly Martínez Guitérrez
SOA Ecuador is working with Latin American influencers on a social media challenge to raise awareness and pose challenges to viewers to take action on deep seabed mining. The posts and live discussions aim to reach over 500,000 people and generate at least 200 signatures for SOA's campaign for a moratorium on deep sea mining.
Learn MoreStartup
Mexico
North America
Blue Foods: Fisheries, Aquaculture, & Seafood Alternatives
Marissa Cuevas, Fanny Villiers, Paola Constantino Diaz
At microTERRA, we produce functional fiber from Lemna, a high-quality, clean-label texturized which represents a $30Bn industry. Our vision is to create ingredients that help protect our environment. Ingredients that instead of using water, are cleaning water. We partner with farms to scale up and grow lemna in an affordable way. Most importantly we are cleaning water, stopping downstream pollution, and reducing agricultural water footprint.
Learn MoreGrant
Spain
Europe & United Kingdom
Pollution: Waste Reduction & Circular Use
Martí Morató
Go Zero Waste is an App (iOS and Android) that shows plastic-free alternatives for everyday items and then shows where to buy it in your area. The app challenges users to start a zero-waste lifestyle with new sustainable habits and rewarding them with a gamification feature.
Learn MoreStartup
United States of America
North America
Pollution: Waste Reduction & Circular Use
Lindsey Hoell, Maia Tekle
Dispatch Goods is a women-founded reverse logistics company building the infrastructure for circular packaging. We enable restaurants, grocery stores, and direct-to-consumer brands to offer their customers food in reusable packaging, again and again.
Learn More
