Meet Jade Cave from Ocean Location
Say hello to Jade Cave, the founder of Ocean Location. You also know her as a super-amazing member of The Cramm's Editorial Team who's conducted lots of interviews for us and featured as a Crammer of the Month. But now, we're switching things up and putting Jade in the interviewee seat to talk about her new organization and how she's changing the world.
What inspired you to start Ocean Location? Did growing up in Fiji influence your activism?
I started Ocean Location because of two issues really, number one was that I saw ocean issued being swept under the rug during discussions about climate change and environmentalism which really made no sense to me, because the oceans are such a vital part of our ecosystems and climate and they're really being attacked. Oceans are so, so important to livelihoods and culture all over the world - over 3 billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods, so I really wanted to do something to help center ocean activism in the climate fight. The other reason I started Ocean Location is because I noticed that even when ocean activism was discussed and prioritized, so many young people ended up wanting to make a difference but with no idea how. There's a fundamental difference between inspiration - wanting to make change, and empowerment - believing you can make change. Ocean Location is all about closing that gap, it's all about saying "you want to make a difference? Awesome. Here's how. Let's do this." I think the activism world was missing something like that, something that cut through the madness of all the programmes and opportunities out there and made activism approachable, not as daunting, and in doing so, empowered a movement of young people with the tools we need to take on the big issues, and win.
How can people get involved in Ocean Location?
There are SO many ways to get involved with Ocean Location! That's part of what makes it so unique - I really wanted it to be a community, and a platform that was very engaging and democratic, so at literally every section of the website there are ways to get involved. We take submissions in our informative news section, we feature young ocean activists and organizations in our blog, and we are working to establish gallery pages that display and celebrate young people's art, poetry, prose, videos and more! We're also accepting staff applications on a rolling basis so anyone can apply to be a part of our team and contribute to creating content and empowering our community.
What does the future of Ocean Location look like?
The future of Ocean Location looks like a global community of inspired youth working actively to make change at a local and global level, all with the tools and support they need to really succeed. I see a network of chapters around the world, summits and panels, and more. Ocean Location really isn't just about a website, it's very much about building a movement.
You’ve been involved in a number of youth activism organizations — The Cramm included! Why is it important for young people to get involved in the world, and furthermore, why are young people so well equipped to make a difference?
I think we're living in a really important time right now, it seems like we're on the precipice of change on multiple fronts and I truly believe that Gen Z is a huge part of that, It really boils down to the fact that this is our future, these are our lives and we deserve the chance to shape them. Young people have an innate power to make a difference because we're so full of energy. I really believe that we're fighting so hard and making such a difference because we're a generation of idealists, we're too young to be cynical, so we keep fighting because we believe in a world that's worth fighting for, It's our idealism that makes us this powerful, and we are powerful. Gen Z is truly a formidable force.
Do you have any advice to young people looking to create change?
My biggest piece of advice for young people is to just start. Don't build activism up as a huge task that we can't achieve, pick a cause and do something, anything, even if it's miniscule. Once we start it'll be easy to do more and more as we meet new people and learn new skills. The second piece of advice is that we need to know our power, we need to understand that we can make an impact, that our voice deserves to be heard. That as a generation and as individuals we're powerful.
What is a question you’d ask yourself, and could you please answer it?
The question I would ask myself is what makes Ocean Location different to other ocean conservation initiatives, and the answer is that OL looks at empowerment through every possible angle, the platform is kind of like a one stop shop! Ocean Location informs you on the issues, the science and the solutions, it inspires you with the stories of other activists and the fights we're winning, it makes space for community and expression, and it directs you towards concrete and meaningful ways to make an impact. Our goal is to inform, inspire and act, because that's empowerment: understanding the issues and knowing their solutions, believing in our capacity to make those solutions happen, and knowing exactly how to do so. OL does it all.
I started Ocean Location because of two issues really, number one was that I saw ocean issued being swept under the rug during discussions about climate change and environmentalism which really made no sense to me, because the oceans are such a vital part of our ecosystems and climate and they're really being attacked. Oceans are so, so important to livelihoods and culture all over the world - over 3 billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods, so I really wanted to do something to help center ocean activism in the climate fight. The other reason I started Ocean Location is because I noticed that even when ocean activism was discussed and prioritized, so many young people ended up wanting to make a difference but with no idea how. There's a fundamental difference between inspiration - wanting to make change, and empowerment - believing you can make change. Ocean Location is all about closing that gap, it's all about saying "you want to make a difference? Awesome. Here's how. Let's do this." I think the activism world was missing something like that, something that cut through the madness of all the programmes and opportunities out there and made activism approachable, not as daunting, and in doing so, empowered a movement of young people with the tools we need to take on the big issues, and win.
How can people get involved in Ocean Location?
There are SO many ways to get involved with Ocean Location! That's part of what makes it so unique - I really wanted it to be a community, and a platform that was very engaging and democratic, so at literally every section of the website there are ways to get involved. We take submissions in our informative news section, we feature young ocean activists and organizations in our blog, and we are working to establish gallery pages that display and celebrate young people's art, poetry, prose, videos and more! We're also accepting staff applications on a rolling basis so anyone can apply to be a part of our team and contribute to creating content and empowering our community.
What does the future of Ocean Location look like?
The future of Ocean Location looks like a global community of inspired youth working actively to make change at a local and global level, all with the tools and support they need to really succeed. I see a network of chapters around the world, summits and panels, and more. Ocean Location really isn't just about a website, it's very much about building a movement.
You’ve been involved in a number of youth activism organizations — The Cramm included! Why is it important for young people to get involved in the world, and furthermore, why are young people so well equipped to make a difference?
I think we're living in a really important time right now, it seems like we're on the precipice of change on multiple fronts and I truly believe that Gen Z is a huge part of that, It really boils down to the fact that this is our future, these are our lives and we deserve the chance to shape them. Young people have an innate power to make a difference because we're so full of energy. I really believe that we're fighting so hard and making such a difference because we're a generation of idealists, we're too young to be cynical, so we keep fighting because we believe in a world that's worth fighting for, It's our idealism that makes us this powerful, and we are powerful. Gen Z is truly a formidable force.
Do you have any advice to young people looking to create change?
My biggest piece of advice for young people is to just start. Don't build activism up as a huge task that we can't achieve, pick a cause and do something, anything, even if it's miniscule. Once we start it'll be easy to do more and more as we meet new people and learn new skills. The second piece of advice is that we need to know our power, we need to understand that we can make an impact, that our voice deserves to be heard. That as a generation and as individuals we're powerful.
What is a question you’d ask yourself, and could you please answer it?
The question I would ask myself is what makes Ocean Location different to other ocean conservation initiatives, and the answer is that OL looks at empowerment through every possible angle, the platform is kind of like a one stop shop! Ocean Location informs you on the issues, the science and the solutions, it inspires you with the stories of other activists and the fights we're winning, it makes space for community and expression, and it directs you towards concrete and meaningful ways to make an impact. Our goal is to inform, inspire and act, because that's empowerment: understanding the issues and knowing their solutions, believing in our capacity to make those solutions happen, and knowing exactly how to do so. OL does it all.