Planet Ocean: Tides are Changing
The ocean connects, sustains, and supports us all. Yet its health is at a tipping point and so is the well-being of all that depends on it. As the past years have shown us, we need to work together to create a new balance with the ocean that no longer depletes its bounty but instead restores its vibrancy and brings it new life.
Together we can shed light on the communities, ideas, and solutions that are working together to protect and revitalize the ocean and everything it sustains.
World Ocean Day
World Ocean Day is the UN-recognized day of ocean celebration and action.
On World Ocean Day, people around our blue planet celebrate and honor the ocean, which connects us all. Get together with your family, friends, community, and the planet to start creating a better future. Working together, we can and will protect our shared ocean. Join this growing global celebration on June 8th!
WHY CELEBRATE WORLD OCEAN DAY?
A healthy world ocean is critical to our survival. Every year, World Ocean Day provides a unique opportunity to honor, help protect, and conserve our world’s shared ocean. The ocean is important because it:
- Generates most of the oxygen we breathe
- Helps feed us
- Regulates our climate
- Cleans the water we drink
- Offers a pharmacopoeia of medicines
- Provides limitless inspiration!
NOW EACH OF US CAN GIVE BACK
Participate in a World Ocean Day event or activity this year and help protect the ocean for the future. It’s up to each one of us to help ensure that our ocean is healthy for future generations. World Ocean Day allows us to:
- Change perspective – encourage individuals to think about what the ocean means to them and what it has to offer all of us with hopes of conserving it for present and the future generations.
- Learn – discover the wealth of diverse and beautiful ocean creatures and habitats, how our daily actions affect them, and how we are all interconnected.
- Change our ways – we are all linked to, and through, the ocean! By taking care of your backyard and helping in your community, you are acting as a caretaker of our ocean. Making small modifications to your everyday habits will make a difference, and involving your family, friends, and community will benefit our blue planet even more! SEE OUR FACT SHEET
- Celebrate – whether you live inland or on the coast, we are all connected to the ocean. Take the time to think about how the ocean affects you, and how you affect the ocean, and then organize or participate in activities that celebrate our ocean.
World Ocean Day Events 2023
June 15th – 8:30 pm
“Seaddrift”
Documentary by Tim Tsai
Saengerfest Park
Bring your lawn chairs and join us under the stars for a free film screening of “Seadrift”. In 1979, a Vietnamese refugee shoots a white fisherman at the town docks in Seadrift, Texas. What began as a dispute over fishing territory erupts into violence and ignites a maelstrom of boat burnings, KKK intimidation, and other hostilities against Vietnam War refugees along the Gulf Coast. Seadrift is a riveting deep dive into the event and the unexpected consequences that continue to reverberate.
June 9th – 6:30 pm
“Cast Away: Poems of Our Times”
Poetry Reading y Naomi Shihab Nye
The Proletariat Gallery & Public House
Acclaimed poet and Young People’s Poet Laureate Naomi Shihab Nye shines a spotlight on the things we cast away, from plastic water bottles to those less fortunate, in this collection of more than eighty original and never-before-published poems. “Cast Away” is a deeply moving, sometimes funny, and always provocative poetry collection for all ages. Join us for a poetry reading by Naomi and stick around to meet the poet at a book signing.
June 10th – 11:00 am to 4:30 pm
Artist Boat’s World Ocean Day Festival
R.A Apffel Beach Park, East Beach
1923 Boddeker Rd, Galveston, TX 77550
Join Artist Boat and our partners in celebrating World Ocean Day. Spend the day at the beach discovering, learning, demonstrating, and experiencing how we CAN be a part of the solution to keep pollution out of the ocean. Enjoy hands-on activities, Eco-Art workshops and Bucket Brigade tours (see registrations below), and live entertainment on the main stage.
Winners of the Beautify the Bucket Art Contest will be announced at 3:00 pm.
The Festival is FREE. However, East Beach parking fees will apply. ($15/Car All Day)
World Ocean Day Festival Workshops
Ocean-lovers of all ages can join in on a workshop on the beach.
Workshops will take place at the World Ocean Day Festival on June 10, 2023
R.A. Apffel Beach Park, East Beach
Workshops are filling up! Register Below!
Screen Printing
Participants will be introduced to a versatile printing process utilized by visual artists worldwide. The printing technique allows students to quickly and easily make multiple images of original art.
Watercolor Painting
Learn the plein air technique of watercolor painting outdoors. A local artist will lead participants in exploring basic watercolor techniques as you create your personalized paintings of native Galveston wildlife.
Poetry Writing
Learn to write poetry with the acclaimed poet, Naomi Shihab Nye, author of “Cast Away: Poems of Our Time”. With her guidance you will be creating your own poetry in no time.
Drum Circle
Join in on a drum circle on the beach. You will get an opportunity to learn how to play a drum or other percussion instrument with leader and host, Ilya Janos Kolozs.
I Smell Something Fishy
Hand-build your own fish from clay as you experience and learn the feeding adaptations of fish. Our Eco-Art Educators will guide you through this workshop using both the disciplines of art and science.
Bucket Brigade
Explore the creatures and features that make Galveston beaches unique with Artist Boat’s Bucket Brigade, an interpretive Beach tour. Learn all about what makes our coast unique with hands-on activities and topics like turbid water, marine debris, Sargassum landings, and more!
Festival Activities
Beautify the Bucket
The Beautify the Bucket Art Contest is in full swing with 110 trash barrels, provided by the Galveston Island Park Board of Trustees. These barrels will be prepped, primed and painted over the next month and displayed at the World Ocean Day Festival. Winners will be announced at 3:00 pm on June 10th. Don’t miss out on viewing these amazing pieces of marine art in one place! After the the festival, these barrels will be distributed along the beaches and other locations across Galveston Island as needed.
Vendors & Partners
Visit the World Ocean Day Festival Tent to meet our partners and sponsors of this year’s event. Spend the day learning about the ocean and environment for these amazing vendors and volunteers.
TWRC Animal Ambassadors
Come meet and learn about animal friends at the Texas Wildlife Rehabilitation Coalition tent. TWRC will introduce their animal ambassadors, answer questions, and share ways you can help native wildlife and ways you can assist in animal rescue when you see a hurt animal on your property or in your neighborhood.
SPONSORS
