Press Release: Global Youth Innovation for Ocean Sustainability: 2026 Youth Innovation Challenge Sets New Records for Participating Countries and Submissions

Responsible entity and spokesperson: Deputy Director-General Yi-Che Shih, Ocean Conservation Administration
Contact Number: 07-3383203 or 0937-483-035

September 16, 2026 - The global momentum for youth-driven environmental innovation has reached a new milestone. The Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA) of the Ocean Affairs Council, in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) and the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) through the Global Environmental Education Partnership (GEEP), has jointly promoted the Youth Innovation Challenge (YIC) since 2021.

The 2026 Youth Innovation Challenge attracted a record-breaking 401 submissions from 69 countries, setting new highs in both the number of participating countries and total submissions. The unprecedented level of participation demonstrates the strong enthusiasm of young people around the world for addressing marine environmental challenges through innovative ideas and action.

OCA Director-General Shiau-Yun Lu said that, in its fifth year, the Youth Innovation Challenge encourages young people to identify and respond to marine environmental challenges, while turning individual ideas and actions into broader impacts across families, communities, and the international community. The initiative highlights the power of marine conservation to transcend generations and national borders.

Participation in the challenge has continued to grow over the years. In 2023, the competition received 136 submissions from 50 countries, followed by 152 submissions from 42 countries in 2024 and 300 submissions from 64 countries in 2025. In 2026, participation reached a new record, with 401 submissions from 69 countries, reflecting the continued momentum of youth engagement in marine conservation worldwide.

Director-General Lu noted that each award recipient will receive a USD $1,000 prize and will be invited to Taiwan to participate in the 2026 International Forum on Marine Environment and Marine Debris Governance and the YIC awards ceremony. The winners will have the opportunity to share their innovative solutions for marine debris management and marine conservation in person, showcasing the creativity and capacity for action demonstrated by the younger generation in addressing global marine environmental challenges.

The top three winning projects share a common focus on developing high-impact and innovative solutions, while each adopts a distinctive, community-centered approach. Through environmental education, community engagement, and local action, the projects deepen public understanding of and participation in marine conservation, while addressing key issues including marine debris, plastic pollution, and coastal environmental challenges.

“These young people are showing what's possible when passion, creativity, and environmental education come together. They're developing solutions, engaging their communities, and taking action to protect our oceans and marine environments. We're so proud to celebrate their ideas and leadership—and the hope they give us for the future," said Judy Braus, NAAEE's executive director.

The record-breaking participation in the 2026 Youth Innovation Challenge demonstrates that marine conservation has become an increasingly important and shared concern among young people around the world. It also highlights the growing energy of youth in using innovative thinking to address environmental challenges and develop practical solutions.

The OCA and the GEEP extend appreciation to young innovators from around the world for their enthusiastic participation. Looking ahead, the OCA will continue to strengthen international cooperation and youth exchange, encourage more young people to take action for the marine environment, and foster a global community in which ideas cross borders and meaningful action continues to grow.

Winning Projects and Reasons for Recognition：

Nigeria | Bashir Abdullahi Sani | The Floating Guardians Project

Project Overview

Bashir Abdullahi Sani’s The Floating Guardians Project focuses on protecting the Lagos Lagoon by using locally available, low-cost bamboo to construct ecological interception barriers that help prevent floating waste from entering the ocean.

The project also brings together traditional community leaders and young people to promote intergenerational ocean literacy and community capacity building. Rather than focusing solely on cleaning up waste, the initiative uses local resources and community participation to empower residents to move from being affected by environmental problems to becoming active stewards and managers of marine resources.

Through this approach, the project establishes a community-based model for marine debris management that is locally grounded, sustainable, scalable, and potentially replicable in other communities.

Reason for Recognition

The project places the community at the center of marine conservation and uses local resources and community strengths to address the challenges facing the Lagos Lagoon. By extending environmental action beyond waste collection to include community participation, ocean literacy, and locally driven governance, the project demonstrates strong local relevance, sustainability, scalability, and tangible community-driven impact in marine conservation.

Indonesia｜Team Ocean Heroes ITB (Team leader: Nadila Putri Aprilia)｜Ocean Heroes Learning Kit

Project Overview

The Ocean Heroes Learning Kit is a marine environmental education toolkit designed to maximize educational impact and help elementary school teachers introduce students in Grades 4–6 to the issue of marine debris.

The toolkit consists of four core components: an interactive adventure storybook, a collaborative board game, student worksheets, and a teacher’s guide. Through storytelling, role-playing, cooperative games, classroom discussions, local action, and learning reflection, the program provides a comprehensive learning journey that guides students from understanding environmental issues to taking action.

Reason for Recognition

The Ocean Heroes Learning Kit uses innovative approaches—including storytelling, role-playing, cooperative games, and community-based action—to transform ocean literacy into an engaging educational experience and an accessible pathway to real-world action. The project not only supports teachers in delivering environmental education, but also cultivates students’ environmental empathy, collaboration skills, and capacity to take action for marine conservation.

Kazakhstan｜AquaNode (Team leader: Timur Kuandykov)｜Building Children’s Awareness of the Impacts of Climate Change on Water Resources While Developing Engineering Thinking

Project Overview

AquaNode is a low-cost and replicable DIY water-quality monitoring kit that enables students to build their own monitoring buoys using recycled plastic materials. Through hands-on activities such as soldering, circuit wiring, and firmware configuration, students can construct devices capable of measuring water temperature and turbidity and transmitting real-time data to a shared data map.

The project combines hands-on engineering with environmental education, allowing students to learn about scientific monitoring and water-related environmental issues through direct engagement with real-world data. Teachers can also use a dedicated dashboard to monitor students’ learning progress and integrate the accompanying educational materials into classroom instruction.

Reason for Recognition

With a cost of approximately USD $15 per kit, AquaNode lowers the barriers to environmental monitoring while effectively integrating recycled materials, technology, and hands-on learning. By enabling students to collect and analyze real-world environmental data themselves, the project demonstrates strong innovation, educational value, environmental impact, accessibility, and replicability. It also effectively develops students’ engineering thinking, scientific inquiry skills, and capacity for environmental action.