Highlights from Oceans Week 2026
Big Blue & You took on Oceans Week 2026 with our Operations Coordinator, Alejandro Ganaza, connecting with youth advocates from around the world, attending exciting workshops and panels, and meeting with four Senate staff teams on Capitol Hill to shed light on the current ocean work and encourage members of Congress to continue protecting our seas and co-sponsoring bills in session.
Building Connections Before Oceans Week Begins
Kicking it all off on a Sunday, Alejandro attended the Youth Climate Collaborative dinner coordinated by Pooja Tilvawala with other youth activists in the voting rights space, environmental science, and marine biology. Altogether, we share our hopes for what the Ocean Week would entail and goals for the week.
“Connecting with young professionals created a space to share not only past experiences, but a notion of where to look for the future.” - Alejandro
Oceans Week Kicks Off with Collaboration and Learning
On Tuesday, the organizations in Washington, D.C. kicked off Oceans Week with a brunch hosted by the National Oceanic Protection Coalition (NOPC) at Teaism with over 40 leaders in attendance. UpWell began later that morning at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library with panels on indigenous heritage, social media, deep-sea mining, youth engagement, and public policy 101. Reconnecting with Sea Youth Rise Up Alumni Myra Fisun (2023), Ibrahim Ware (2025), and Evelyn James (2025) was one of the highlights, as we were able to capture lots of content and spend time talking about the work we have each done in our areas. To wrap up a long day of learning and pitching in ideas, Alejandro joined the Futurewell team for dinner and brainstorming for the upcoming hill day on Thursday.
Reconnecting with the Next Generation of Ocean Advocates
On Wednesday, Alejandro attended the first half of the UpWell convention, which was now in auditorium-style and livestreamed for the public to reach a more general audience from the talks that were discussed the day prior. UpWell had over 200 people in attendance, which was mind-blowing to see so many organizations in a grassroots movement create such an energetic wave of change.
But that is not all! Alejandro then went to the CHOW convention held in the Ronald Reagan Building (hosted by the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation) to hear the panels on innovative solutions and the new angle the convention has taken within the ocean science and exploration space. Quick pitstop at the Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal Lunch and straight back to the UpWell recap reception… still keeping up?
Ending the night early and getting some rest, and up and at ‘em the next day for Hill Day!
Addressing Today's Most Pressing Ocean Challenges
Alejandro tagged along with the Futureswell team, including Mark Haver and Mickey Rogers, to join in on some meetings with senators that were open to talking about the work in conservation and deep-sea mining, specifically as recent news has hit about leasing permits being open within areas in the Pacific after the initial debut of deep-sea mining off the coast of North Carolina. In total, the team met with Senator Alsobrooks (D), Senator Sullivan (R), Senator Warnock (D), and Senator Blumenthal (D). Overall, all the meetings were very clear and efficient in getting the point across and letting our congressmen know the importance of this pressing issue. Other topics covered included illegal fishing and plastic pollution as a public health threat (relating to the work done within Plastic Free Cities)
Celebrating Solutions Through Storytelling
To end the successful hill day, Alejandro headed over to Dupont Circle to see the latest Black in Marine Science (BIMS) activation screening two short films about sustainable textiles and reducing sargassum by turning it into woven fabrics and upcycled materials in Belize. It has been a long, but exciting week.
“Thank you to Futureswell, NOPC, BIMS, and UpWell for making this Oceans Week 2026 unforgettable and possible.” - Alejandro
And that’s a wrap!