Youth for a Sustainable Future // Jovenes para un Futuro Sostenible

🌟 3 weeks to go!

We're counting down to the ECOSOC Youth Forum, happening on 15-17 April 2025.
As leaders and catalysts for change, young people are coming together to make their future a reality.

Save the date for our side event on April 17 from 1-3 pm at 777 United Nations plaza, 2nd floor 🌎🍃

Speakers include:
-Mr. Rodrigo Mundaca, Regional Governor of Valparaíso, Chile
-Jeremy Raguin, Senior Programme Officer, BBNJ Agreement (ESARO) and IUCN
-Emilie McGlone, Director of Peace Boat US
-Ilona Da Cruz Gerngross, Youth for SDGs
-Shannen Henry, Council on Sustainable Fashion and Design of Grenada
-Jose Maidana, Peace Boat US youth
-Ahmed Elsayed, Global Kids
-Jackson Weill, Peace Boat US Youth
-Noemi Florea, Creatives for Our Future
-Marina Testino, Director of Strategic Partnerships at Earth Partner

Film screenings for the UN Ocean Decade:
Introduction by Emy Kane from Lonely Whale
- "Special preview of Seaweed Stories, narrated by Forest Whitaker and presented by Lonely Whale in association with Re:wild, before its global release in June for UN World Oceans Day" and more!

Be part of the change: https://ecosoc.un.org/en/what-we-do/ecosoc-youth-forum/about-youth-forum/ecosoc-youth-forum-2025

Today we are at Harvard University to participate in various events around sustainability and climate action as we gear up for COP 29! This evening there is a panel discussion for students interested in learning about careers in climate and sustainability.

Peace Boat US is excited to welcome Harvard students to join us at COP this November in Baku, and we are also working on a special internship program with the Salata Institute on sustainability for students to join us at the United Nations for important conferences around ocean and climate action this coming year.

The Salata Institute is hosting programs including the Careers in Climate Action Speaker Series, featuring leading climate and sustainability practitioners from a broad range of industries and sectors. Speakers are sharing their reflections on their work and career path, providing students from across sectors with valuable insights needed to launch a climate career.

Introducing our "Youth for the SDGs" scholars for the UN Ocean Decade on our current voyage from Mexico to Alaska!

Peace Boat US is a committed campaigner for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and works to build a culture of peace and sustainability around the world by connecting people across borders and creating opportunities for learning, activism and international cooperation.

The 2024 Youth for the SDGs program is a unique experiential learning and capacity-building program for young activists and scholars engaged in SDG-related initiatives from around the world. Youth leaders will join together with experts in the field and learn from local partners working on ocean and climate action through various initiatives such as with Blue Economy programs in Manzanillo and working with Ocean Wise Early Career Ocean Professionals (ECOPS) partners in Vancouver, sharing in their efforts to protect the pristine natural resources, kelp forests and biodiversity within the Pacific Coast region as we sail to Alaska.

During the voyage, youth will also be participating in a citizen science program in collaboration with the non profit organization EarthEcho International to perform water quality testing in different ports of call and bodies of water within the mangroves and coral reefs of the Mexican Pacific coast and in the glaciers of the Alaskan fjords of Ketchikan and Seward, as well as the ocean and lakes in Vancouver. This data will then be shared with the IOC UNESCO platform entitled ODIS - Ocean Data Information System as part of our contribution to the UN Ocean Decade and education for SDG 14, Life Below Water.

This year, the “Youth for SDGs” programs will sail under the banner of the United Nations World Oceans Day theme “Awaken New Depths” as we explore the ocean’s vastness and learn about the importance of conservation for deep sea animals and biodiversity around the world.

Today from 10 AM EST - tune in online to our "Becoming Ocean Heroes" series!

Dive into an ocean of possibilities at the upcoming event organized by Peace Boat US in collaboration with the Paris Committee on Capacity-Building (PCCB) Network from the UNFCCC! Join Peace Boat US Director, Emilie McGlone and the Youth for SDGs scholars Molly Rosaaen, Kneyone Murray, and Maria Fernanda with understanding the important to build capacity amongst youth of scientific knowledge on the ocean and climate crisis, as well as how youth can contribute to public engagement, education and awareness raising, increasing scientific knowledge amongst the general public.

Discover why it's vital for young minds to grasp scientific knowledge about our oceans and climate, and learn how your voice can ignite change through public engagement and education. Get ready to unleash your creativity as science meets storytelling, film, spoken word, and poetry, featuring young ocean champions sharing their experiences from the front lines of climate action.

Register here:
https://unfccc.int/event/becoming-ocean-champions

Feb 17 is known as the Global Tourism Reslience Day by the United Nations. Travel and tourism connects people, fosters inclusion and is key to socio-economic progress while contributing directly to the .

Peace Boat is currently traveling to South Africa, where we will be joining our partners at OceanHub Africa for their 2024 Ocean Innovation Summit in Cape Town!

Wherever we go, let’s remember to make good memories and be responsible visitors.

This Global Tourism Resilience Day, here are 12 ways to make your travel more sustainable from our partners at the United Nations Development Programme - UNDP ✈️🌊 https://go.undp.org/rU23

Onboard the Peace Boat, our Youth for the SDGs scholars are actively engaging in workshops and educational conferences for the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development this week as we sail from Punta Arenas, Chile to Ushuaia and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Thank you to everyone who has supported our scholarship program this year, and we look forward to the days ahead!

This morning in Dubai we are presenting at COP 28 with a special Press Conference to announce our programs for the United Nations Ocean Decade! You can tune in via the livestream link here from 11:00 AM GST

Press Info:

Peace Boat will highlight our educational programs focused on the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and Youth Leadership for Ocean and Climate Action.

As a programme for youth leaders from around the world, including states on the front line of climate change and marine degradation, Peace Boat US launched a new Youth for the SDGs scholarship program as an endorsed “Contribution” of the UN Ocean Decade. The initiative provides an enriching experience for the young leaders through a combination of capacity development, citizen science, networking and educational programs onboard Peace Boat and in ports of call.

Peace Boat will also announce new climate youth programmes in 2024 including the next “Youth for the SDGs” Scholarship focused on SDGs 13 and 14, organized by Peace Boat US as the 2024 Patagonia Voyage – January 20 to February 10, 2024 from Chile to Argentina.

Speakers:

- Kneyone Murray, Youth for the SDGs Scholar, Trinidad and Tobago
- Jacquelyn Francis, Global Warming Mitigation Project
- Francois Rogers, Executive Director of Blue Planet Alliance
- Elnaz Barjandi, Programme and Operations Manager, WMU-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute, World Maritime University
- Ruben Hazelzet, Captain Fanplastic
- Stephen Keppel, Pvblic Foundation, SDG Data Alliance

Moderator: Emilie McGlone, Director of Peace Boat US

Watch it live here from 11:00 AM GST :
https://unfccc.int/event/pbv-sailing-for-sustainability-youth-action-for-the-un-ocean-decade

We arrived in Dubai today with our team to set up our photography and art exhibit for the Peace Boat US programs focused on the UN Ocean Decade! Just 2 days until COP 28 begins!

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Our Water Test Kits from EarthEcho International arrived to the Peace Boat US office! This summer we will be traveling in the Arctic and Latin America, learning about marine biodiversity, climate change and sustainable development throughout our 114th Global Voyage! We will be gathering data on ocean temperatures, PH levels, salinity and much more! Our data will be shared with the United Nations Ocean Decade platform and we are excited to embark on this journey of citizen science together!

Arctic Voyage: May 24 – June 14, 2023
May 24 – Program starts in London
May 26 – Peace Boat arrives Tilbury (London) UK
May 27 – Peace Boat departs Tilbury (London) UK
May 31 – Åndalsnes, Norway
June 2 – Tromso, Norway
June 3 – Honningsvåg, Norway
June 5 – Longyearbyen, Norway
June 09 – June 10 – Akureyri, Iceland
June 11 – June 12 – Reykjavik, Iceland
June 14 – Program conclusion in Iceland

Latin American Voyage: June 20 – July 5, 2023
June 20 – Program starts in Cristobal, Panama
June 24 – Peace Boat arrives Cristobal, Panama & Embarkation
June 25 – Peace Boat travels through the Panama Canal
June 28-29 – Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala
July 2 – Manzanillo, Mexico & Disembarkation
July 5 – Program Conclusion

You can join us onboard and learn more about ocean and climate action together!

Applications by April 30: https://peaceboat-us.org/y4sdgs-114/

This afternoon, La Tisha Parkinson, one of our Peace Boat Ocean and Climate Youth Ambassadors from Trinidad and Tobago, will be presenting during the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development- NY webinar: “Investing in Science, Technology & Art to Support Our Oceans”, taking place online from 1 PM - 3:30 PM EDT!

The event highlights the importance of connecting science, innovative technologies and the arts to support our oceans through partnerships. Peace Boat US is a proud member of the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development and we are excited to have La Tisha represent youth from this year's "Action for the Oceans" program!

La Tisha has recently participated in this initiative and her call to action for youth was to change eating traditions that are depleting shark populations in the Caribbean and around the world. You can read more about her work and what actions you can take here: https://www.pendulum.site/latisha

Register to join the webinar today online here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/.../reg.../WN_sJT8DSVCR6mD34uvSg30rw