Vast potential lies beneath the surface of the world’s oceans, but many people are unaware of the economic and environmental opportunities within its depths. By learning about the blue economy from a young age, individuals gain the power to tap into its boundless benefits while protecting our oceans.
We spoke with Omar Hussein, Brilliant Blue Challenge Director at Brilliant Labs, about how this competition is empowering youth around the world to access opportunities in the blue economy and bring innovative ocean-based solutions to life.
What was the “spark” that inspired Brilliant Labs to start the Brilliant Blue Challenge?
Realizing the huge lack of awareness among youth, globally, about the blue economy and the vast career opportunities it has to offer, we knew we had to take action.
After consulting with key stakeholders in different sectors of the blue economy in Canada, the team at Brilliant Labs launched the Brilliant Blue Challenge, a global annual ocean innovation competition for high school students that is endorsed by the UN Ocean Decade.
Sparking interest in the blue economy is important, especially within the Canadian landscape, where awareness of academic and career opportunities in the ocean industries among youth is limited. This is a crucial step for combatting the significant shortage of skilled workers in areas such as ocean mapping, data analytics, and autonomous underwater vehicles, and tapping into the environmental and economic potential the blue economy provides.
Our program objectives include raising awareness about the boundless opportunities in the ocean industries; fostering soft, technical, and entrepreneurial skillsets; and providing an experiential learning platform that connects students to industry professionals.
Ultimately, the Brilliant Blue Challenge empowers youth around the world while supporting the Ocean Decade’s outcomes, including ensuring a clean, healthy, resilient, safe ocean, that is productive, accessible, and inspiring.
What do you consider to be your biggest success? Can you share any stories of the impact your work has had that have surprised you?
Our inaugural competition, held virtually in December 2023, was a major success, showcasing the incredible creativity and dedication of young minds from all over the world toward ocean innovation. It was incredible to garner interest and participation from 14 countries, including Canada, Nigeria, Indonesia, and Senegal.
Over 20 teams presented innovative youth-created solutions in the categories of Marine Autonomous Systems, Healthy Marine Life, and Marine Renewable Energy, and the event ended with more than 10 winning teams.
How can supporting the blue economy help make the world better?
The ocean is a frontier for innovation, from biotechnology to renewable energy. Protecting our oceans and supporting the blue economy is invaluable for advancing innovation and maintaining biodiversity, as oceans host nearly 80% of Earth’s life, providing critical habitats for countless species. Oceans also act as a climate buffer, absorbing over 90% of the excess heat from climate change and about 30% of human-produced CO2, and provide food security, as over 3 billion people rely on the ocean for their primary source of protein.
The blue economy is also critical for economic development and is projected to reach $4 trillion by 2030. Sustainable ocean practices can create jobs, boost economic growth, and ensure long-term prosperity for coastal communities.
What are some of the challenges you typically face in carrying out your purpose?
Convening K-12 students, academia, industry, and policymakers is not a trivial task when working on a global early talent pipeline program but is a necessity for achieving our goal of raising awareness of and contributing to the blue economy.
We work to overcome the challenges involved in this through online participation as well as helping potential participants and mentors see the benefits of taking part.
Our program provides a quadruple-win scenario for youth, the public sector, the private sector, and academia. By helping students develop skills and grow their knowledge of the blue economy, the program attracts students to ocean programs and career opportunities, which in turn builds an inclusive, innovative talent pipeline.
Are there any upcoming initiatives or projects you’d like to share?
After the success of our virtual inaugural competition, we are organizing the first hybrid competition in Nova Scotia, Canada. The 2024 edition of the Brilliant Blue Challenge will take place on October 25–26, 2024, and will connect youth with subject matter mentors as they explore real-world, pressing challenges in the blue economy. Registration is currently open. You can learn more about how to participate here and through our website.
What can people do to help support your mission?
We’re actively recruiting partners who can help us provide the best experience for the participating students through promotion, recruiting subject-matter experts as mentors, access to data and relevant industry resources, recruiting volunteer judges, availing scholarship and internship opportunities, connections with incubators and incubation programs, co-designing curriculum, and hosting competitions and summer camps.
This story was featured in the Make The World Better Magazine:
