About Us
develop leaders, cultivate ideas, inspire hope, and accelerate solutions to protect, preserve, and restore the coastal ecosystems of South Carolina
Our Story
We are the Carolina Ocean Alliance, a nonprofit based in Charleston, South Carolina that is grounded in community-driven solutions, civic ecology, and the transformative power each of us has to use our unique gifts and passions to be the change we want to see in the world.
We believe that to heal our planet and ourselves, we must act as a part of this world, not apart from it, experiencing community as the vast ecological web of life that supports and sustains us.
We believe that hope is a regenerative act that we will work everyday to inspire through accessible, tangible, and creative action.
To have a healthy planet, we need to protect and restore the health of our oceans. In doing so, we must protect and restore the health of coastal ecosystems and the communities that live alongside them. We must reimagine and reshape the systems that create environmental harm and injustice while understanding that we are all downstream of someone and upstream of someone else. We can do all of this through nature-based design, community-driven solutions, ecologically-guided policy, and a shared responsibility for our planet and for the well-being of our neighbors.
The Carolina Ocean Alliance acts as a member of a global “network of networks” of communities, NGOs, and cultural stewards working to combat climate change, protect ocean biodiversity, and solve the world’s greatest problems.
While the Carolina Ocean Alliance is not a membership organization, interested students and early career professionals can join the Sustainable Ocean Alliance - Charleston and will be eligible to participate in SOA programming and functions, apply to take part in the Young Ocean Leadership program, apply for microgrants with assistance from SOA-Charleston, and apply for SOA’s Ocean Accelerator.
Carolina Ocean Alliance began as Sustainable Ocean Alliance - Charleston, a first-of-its-kind community-centric hub for the Sustainable Ocean Alliance. Now our own standalone non-profit, we continue to partner with SOA as part of a network of dozens of hubs, entrepreneurs, mentors, and partner organizations around the world all sharing the common mission to conserve the ocean and sustainably use marine resources as defined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 14. We believe in promoting and enhancing local solutions led by local people as part of a global grassroots regenerative campaign to fight climate change, biodiversity loss, environmental injustice, and pollution of our oceans and waterways. We believe in the power of partnerships to achieve our goals and confront the challenges that face us all.
Our Mission
Advance Community-Driven Solutions
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The Hope Summit is an annual conference and festival held in Charleston at the end of September to highlight the challenges facing our community and celebrate the community-driven solutions possible through the dozens of nonprofits, community organizations, schools, and local agencies working to create agency and hope in coastal South Carolina.
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The Creek Collective is a mutual aid and collective organizing body facilitated and supported by COA to serve community stewardship groups for creek and marsh systems. This diverse and multidisciplinary coalition of hyper-local stewardship groups works to protect and restore their neighboring salt marshes and creeks, including their surrounding hydrological and ecological corridors including landscaping, native potted plants, oyster reef restoration, and rain gardens.
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Create a “network of networks” promoting collaboration and multi-disciplinary approaches to solving our region’s greatest challenges among conservation-minded young professionals in South Carolina
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Support projects led by or directly benefiting small community organizations through The Hope Summit Works Fund. COA seeks to double or triple the impact of our microgrant support through funding matches from partners and crowd-funding campaigns by awardees.
Develop the Next Generation of Leaders
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COA collaborates with the Sustainable Ocean Alliance to develop and accelerate the next generation of leaders and stewards in South Carolina while instilling a culture of multi-disciplinary collaboration and solutions-driven community engagement.
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Promote and empower young professionals from underrepresented communities in conversations and actions on conservation, climate change, and regenerative processes
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Connect young professionals and advocates in South Carolina with their peers around the world through the international Sustainable Ocean Alliance community to facilitate the exchange of ideas
Foster a Culture of Environmental Stewardship
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Build coalitions around shared values and goals through initiatives meant to create agency and opportunity for local people to craft and propel community-driven solutions
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Promote educational community outreach programs designed to encourage greater stewardship of local lands and waterways including Ghost Creeks. Inspired by Baltimore’s “Ghost Rivers” public art installations and self-guided walking tours, “Ghost Creeks” will promote resilience, environmental justice, and smart city planning by reintroducing current and future residents to the region's buried waterways.
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Encourage ambition and high standards in conservation and sustainability while inspiring pride and love for what makes South Carolina’s ecosystems unique
