Photo: © Courtesy of News Canada
Young people are proving, again and again, that meaningful change doesn’t require a title—it requires conviction. Across Canada, youth are turning creativity, energy, and passion into real-world action to protect the planet, with a growing focus on the ocean: the life-support system that sustains biodiversity, supports communities, and shapes our climate. Thanks to initiatives like the Ocean Action Grant Program, more young Canadians are being equipped to lead local environmental projects focused on ocean health and sustainability.
Backed by community partners and conservation organizations, they’re turning ideas into measurable impact.
Here are three Canadian youth-driven projects supported by initiatives like the Ocean Wise Action Grant:
Andrew Polanyi
Detecting ghost gear with sonar and artificial intelligence (AI)
Andrew’s passion for technology and marine conservation led to an innovative solution to a global problem: ghost fishing gear. Lost or abandoned fishing nets and traps, known as “ghost gear,” continue to catch and harm marine animals long after they’ve been discarded.
Through Ocean AID’s ghost gear retrieval program, Andrew is using sonar and AI to detect underwater debris around Victoria, British Columbia. Andrew and their team locate and recover ghost fishing gear—keeping it out of the ocean and preventing further harm to marine life.
Kit Tymoshuk
Restoring Nova Scotia’s underwater kelp gardens
Kelp forests are disappearing at an alarming rate. These vital underwater ecosystems support marine life, protect shorelines, and help store carbon. To help restore Nova Scotia’s kelp, Kit is crafting ceramic vessels from wild clay to serve as kelp-growing substrates, which will be planted in degraded reef systems.
Kelp restoration is a relatively new field in conservation and is sometimes overlooked. Kit’s underwater garden project creates new footholds for kelp to return—while its artistic approach helps spark conversation and build awareness around protecting these essential, vulnerable undersea forests.
Stephanie Quon
Promoting mental health through ocean conservation
Stephanie’s project brings together calming, restorative experiences in natural spaces, and tangible action to protect them.
Through community cleanups, educational workshops and ocean-based mindfulness activities, Stephanie is creating safe and supportive spaces where participants can connect with and care for the environment as well as themselves. They leave a session with the benefit to their mental well-being, bolstered by knowing that they also helped make a real impact.
Across Canada, youth are leading the charge for a healthier planet—and their ideas are already creating measurable ripples of change. Programs like the Ocean Action Grant Program help carry that momentum forward—fueling youth-led projects that make ocean stewardship tangible at the local level. Each project is a reminder that change can start right where you live: one shoreline, one cleanup, one restoration effort, one community choosing to act.
—NC
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