GreenWave

GreenWave is a nonprofit started by Bren Smith, a fisherman who found a simple, smart way to farm the ocean without harming it. It helps people grow two things—seaweed and shellfish—in the ocean using ropes that hang underwater.

It works on several levels at once:

• It cleans the ocean.
  The seaweed and shellfish grown on these farms naturally soak up pollution and harmful nutrients from the water. Instead of making the ocean dirty, these farms actually make it cleaner and healthier.

• It creates stable jobs.
  Many fishing communities have lost jobs because there aren't enough fish left to catch. Ocean farming gives these families a new way to make money from the water. It doesn't require expensive equipment, fertilizer, or chemicals—just ocean water and sunlight.

• It grows healthy food.
  The seaweed and shellfish produced by these farms are nutritious and healthy to eat. Even if someone doesn't eat seaweed or shellfish directly, these crops are still useful. They can feed animals or be turned into environmentally friendly products like natural fertilizer or packaging.

GreenWave makes it easy and affordable to get started, offering free training and support so anyone in a coastal area can learn to become an ocean farmer. Already, hundreds of people around the U.S.—from fishermen in New England to indigenous communities in Alaska—have started farms using this method.

This new model is simple but very powerful: it helps fix the ocean, gives families good jobs, and produces healthy food and useful products—all at once. Many more communities around the world could use this method, making its potential impact huge.