2020 Inland Ocean Coalition Annual Report

ANNUAL REPORT 2020

You don't have to see the ocean to protect it

LETTER FROM OUR FOUNDER & DIRECTOR As we release our 2020 Annual Report, we reflect on the unprecedented nature of the last year and are looking forward to what seems like a light at the end of the tunnel - a new presidency, a surge of support for environmental and ocean protection, and the tide turning on the global pandemic that has shifted our day-to-day lives drastically.

Despite the impacts COVID-19, we were able to adapt to the shifting landscape by tapping into the benefits of taking much of our programming into the virtual world: accessibility and reach.

The barriers of geographical distance were eliminated and we were able to engage a broader audience and truly align with our mission - engaging inland communities, coastal communities, and everyone in between to show that you don’t have to see the ocean to protect it. Just as we couldn’t physically spend time with many of our loved ones due to the pandemic, many of the communities we work alongside cannot physically see the ocean, but that does not mean that our love and passion for our blue planet is any less than those who can.

I am grateful that our organization was able to thrive in taking advantage of continuing our programming virtually. Our Inland Ocean Ambassadors Training was launched during the pandemic, which is a virtual certification that trains folks who are passionate about our ocean to become effective ocean advocates. This five week training is continuing to grow and engage individuals across the country (and a few around the world). Our chapters were able to invite scientists, advocates, legislators, and activists from across the US to speak at their

events. Our nimbleness and effectiveness truly shone through the connections that were forged between our headquarters, chapters, and ambassadors with their legislators - which was simplified via video calls, rather than trips to Washington D.C. As vaccines are administered and restrictions are lifting, we recognize the successes we’ve had within this virtual sphere, and we hope to continue bridging the gap between inland communities and the coast utilizing the same tools that have gotten us through this pandemic. Through this difficult time we were continuously uplifted by the passion and commitment of our volunteers and supporters, and with a new president and new opportunities for our ocean, it is more important than ever that we keep this momentum going.

Thank you for continuing to inspire us, and for supporting us through 2020 and all that came with it. Ocean stewards should not be limited by geography and we look forward to what 2021 will bring to our coalition as well as to the wellbeing of our blue planet.

For our ocean and waterways,

Founder & Executive Director Inland Ocean Coalition

THE OCEAN BELONGS TO ALL OF US

Mission To create an inland movement that builds land-to-sea stewardship.

Vision For individuals and communities to take an active role in improving the impacts and relationships between the inland, the coasts, and the ocean.

LAND-TO-SEA PROGRAMS As an ocean conservation organization that operates from inland communities across the United States, our approach to ocean protection is inherently a holistic one. Furthermore, the highly interconnected nature of the largest issues facing our ocean necessitate a multi-pronged approach that considers both landbased impacts and what happens at sea.

In 2020 we added climate change to our list of official programs, as protecting our ocean is key to protecting our climate, and protecting our climate is key to protecting our ocean. Our programs are inextricably linked issues and form the basis of our model for protecting our ocean, from source to sea.

Ocean Protection We work on the most serious threats facing our ocean, including overfishing, widespread pollution, offshore oil development, the weakening of healthy fisheries legislation, and attacks on our national marine monuments, sanctuaries, and other protected areas. We focus on federal and state policy, build relationships with policymakers, serve as a resource for ocean issues for inland constituencies, train effective ocean advocates, and facilitate education, outreach, and community building.

Watershed Health To protect our ocean we must protect our waterways. We address the impacts of agriculture on our watersheds, microplastics in our waterways, and host creek cleanups across the country. We facilitate community engagement through educational webinars and workshops, collaborative events, inclassroom education, and advocate for watershed-friendly lawn and yard care practices, healthy personal care products, and support bans on toxic sunscreens in the US and internationally.

Plastic Prevention Global reliance on disposable plastic is overwhelming our planet and risks "near permanent contamination" of the earth. We address plastic pollution through campaigns targeting single-use plastics, working collectively with coalitions and as part of larger movements to get to the root cause of plastic pollution, scientific studies that assess the extent of micro- plastics in our waterways, and legislative change at the state and federal levels. We push for individual and corporate/industry change and are fighting back against the petrochemical buildout happening in the United States.

Climate Change Our ocean is one of our planet's most powerful carbon sinks, and restoring ocean ecosystems one of the best ways we have for addressing the climate crisis. We support legislation to tackle climate change and advocate for including ocean protection as a key solution. Some of the measures we are working to pass include the Thirty by Thirty Resolution to Save Nature, the Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act, the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act (by 2050 plastic production and disposal could account for 14% of our remaining carbon budget), and initiatives like the Ocean Climate Action Plan.

2020 HIGHLIGHTS Healthy Ocean, Water, & Climate Legislation

We signed onto 87 policies, bills, and resolutions to support our ocean, climate, and waterways. We submitted comment letters for key legislation and proposals, and fought for proposed legislation and resolutions like the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act, the OceanBased Climate Solutions Act, the Thirty by Thirty Resolution to Save Nature, plastic pollution reduction bills in Colorado and Wyoming, and measures to safeguard protections for our national marine monuments and sanctuaries.

Virtual Inland Ocean Ambassador Training In response to COVID 19 and lockdowns, we launched our first virtual training—the Inland Ocean Ambassador Certification—to prepare individuals with the tools to be powerful advocates for ocean health.

Over five weeks, Ambassadors from across the country learned from top ocean advocates, scientists, and policymakers, and networked with other IOAs and partner organizations to expand their ocean and water expertise. Ambassadors gained experience in community engagement and advocacy and learned how to be effective ocean, water, and climate champions in their communities.

Meetings with Legislative Leaders We had 14 meetings with legislators from five states in 2020 before COVID-19 lockdowns. After that, the federal government was rightly preoccupied with responding to the pandemic and our meetings with legislators took a backseat. However, our headquarters and chapters continued to maintain positive relationships with legislative leaders throughout the year. We look forward to many more meetings to come, which allow us to discuss key ocean protection issues with legislators, letting them know they have constituents who care about the ocean.

Community Engagement Despite COVID-19 The IOC and its chapters hosted or co-hosted 79 events in 2020 ranging from panel discussions and webinars to documentary screenings, talks given by experts, creek cleanups, Blue Drinks, and more. We hosted a collaborative webinar series with Healthy Ocean Coalition to discuss the intersections of climate change, the ocean, and society. One silver lining of the pandemic was the ability to take all our events virtual, thus attracting a wider array of participants from across the country.

Virtual Masquerade Mermaid Ball As with so many events in 2020, we took our annual Masquerade Mermaid Ball fundraiser virtual. The live event featured an MC, a special guest appearance by Dr. Sylvia Earle, a merman contest, and more. A big thank you to our guests, generous sponsors and donors, and wonderful volunteers who made this event possible! With your help, we were able to raise almost $48,000 to protect our ocean and waterways.

TrashBlitz We teamed up with partners 5 Gyres and Into the Sea for a series of Trash Blitzes. 5 Gyres is leading the development of datasets that will show a broad picture of trash collected in cities across the country.

Using state of the art software, we are able to identify how much plastic is in our streets, rivers, and environment, how much of each type of plastic there is, and which brands are most responsible. This dataset will help support better policies around plastic production and use and has catalogued tens of thousands of pieces of trash to date.

Reaching More People with Land-to-Sea Messaging We've been increasing our reach through our chapters, engagement in more communities, and increased publicity in the online media sphere.

We reached hundreds of thousands of people with the importance of our land-to-sea connection through interviews on Colorado Public Radio, NowThis News, KGNU Community Radio, and others in 2020.

BY THE NUMBERS 79 COMMUNITY EVENTS HOSTED OR ATTENDED ACROSS THE COUNTRY

87 POLICIES AND RESOLUTIONS SIGNED ONTO FOR STRONGER OCEAN PROTECTION

1 NEW CHAPTER LAUNCHED

78 TRAINED INLAND OCEAN AMBASSADORS

11,392 SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWERS

1,000,000s STAFF HOURS SPENT ON ZOOM

CHAPTERS Our chapter network is key to growing the inland ocean movement. Our chapters provide educational and engagement opportunities, connect with legislators across the country, and lead inland initiatives to protect our watersheds, ocean, and climate.

With the inability to host in-person events starting last March, over the course of 2020 our chapters largely focused their efforts on policy engagement and taking advantage of the accessibility our virtual world provides to engage legislators and advocate for critical ocean protection policies.

Chapters fought for issues like protecting 30% of our land and ocean by 2030, plastic pollution legislation at the state and federal levels, and national legislation to protect our ocean and climate. Chapters worked to elevate the importance of ocean issues in their communities and still managed to hold creek cleanups and limited in-person events.

As COVID-19 restrictions continue to lift, we look forward to seeing our chapters continue to engage their communities through a hybrid of virtual events to continue to make our programming accessible, while also incorporating more inperson events.

Our chapter network leads the charge in engaging inland communities in ocean protection. As our inland movement continues to grow, we hope to start chapters in new areas of the country and grow our current chapters so they have more capacity to connect and partner with other organizations that share similar interests and values, all the while increasing our ability to reach more legislators and advocate for ocean health.

2020 Inland Ocean Chapters Alaska | Arizona | Buffalo, New York | Colorado | Colorado State University | Central Texas | Great Lakes, Michigan | Illinois | Montana | North Texas | University of Michigan | University of Colorado | Utah | Washington, DC | Wyoming

DONORS Thank you to the individual donors businesses, and foundations that supported our work in 2020. We are grateful to those who were still able to support us in light of the global pandemic. $75,000

$500+

$100+

The David & Lucile Packard Foundation

Ignition Strategy Group Julia Harrigan Kelly Webb Oceana Rocky Mountain Paddleboard Susan Brodie The Britton Family Foundation The Bowden Family Foundation Trust Point Inc.

Barbara & Tom Miller Bart Costello Chip & Jill Isenhart Elke Adler Erin Cooper Everett Marks Everett weeks Gabriel Tuerk Gary Wockner Glenna DeZafra Jane & Walt Enterline Jean Housepian Jenna & Peter Merlin Judy Gilligan & David Klein Kathryn Mutz Korie Gordon Laura DeLuca Linda Phillips Lori & Josh Kahn Lori Garrison Lukas Haug Lynn Thoré M Suzanne Fowler MaryAnn Briggs Melinda Richards Michael Dirks Modern Market Eatery Network For Good Nicholas Phillips Nina Garfield Pamela Martinson Patt Schnettler

$60,000+ Resources Legacy Fund

$10,000+ Patricia & Bernard Goldstein Family Foundation Scintilla Foundation

$5,000+ BOCO Dental & Prosthodontics Henry Foundation Northern Water Natural Resources Defense Council

$1,000+ 3GuysWhoCare Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck Coal Creek Physical Therapy Earth Island Institute EarthJustice Epic Water Filters Montgomery Cleworth & Susan Drake Ocean Conservancy The Ocean Foundation The Receptionist

$250+ 5 Gyres Institute Caroline Hoyt Community First Foundation Diane Heasley Eleanor Kerlow PR Ginger Mukherjee Hazel's Beverage World Healthy Ocean Coalition Ivi & Kevin Brenner James Bradley Molly & Trevor Bauer Plastic Pollution Coalition Steve Weaver Susie Eastman Live West Realty Wendy Benchley

Patricia Rosenberg Peter & Darcie Weiser Priscila Bajadali Richard Reading Robert Muir Thomas Hay Vicki & Bruce Goldstein Whitney Webber William Shutkin Zori Levine

$50+ Amy & Ken Cramer Andrew & Cassie Todd Angela Joerin Anonymous Ashley Millman Barbara Slate Beverly Reeves Chanda Spears Charmaine Haravey Christine Jochim Cynthia Anderson David Gallegos and Patrick Kelly David Helvarg Deborah Burke Elaine Burritt Jace Mougne Jeff, Julie, & Braden Lindsay Jim Coffin Julia Carr Katherine Ludwig Kathie Flood Louise Chawla Louise Murphy Lynne Buhlig Matthew Fetrow Molly Gardner Natasha Wing Noelle Nicholson Pam Treischel Patricia Tice

Paul Hilbink Tana Matzuk

$25+ Abbey Turner Ajay Shenoy Amie Kusch Andrea Vega Courtney Meijer Dean Whitshire Deanna Semanchik Dylan Gladysz Emily Franc Ethan Shapiro George Cummings Glen Johnson Hannah O'Reilly Jana Simpson Jessica Kuldanek John Westcott Kadee Schoettle Keanna Strong Kelly Wright Kerry Lightenburger Krishna Vasudevan Kristin Bennett Laura Hix Linda Lowry Lindsey Modesitt Lucy Harlbut Mallory McKenna Mary Russell Mary Salazar Melissa Gorchynsky Michelle Diller Nancy & Paul Oberman Nicolas Biber Nicole Cucinella Paddy Ryan Patty Beach Samantha Reifer Sasha Malinina Shari Ross

Shine Community LLC Steven Fox Susan Swern SushiFest Tribe Tasha Wehr Tamar van Vilet Tayla Hackett Theodore Hanlon Victor Bernhards Wade Norris Zachary Greenberg

CORPORATE SPONSORS Thank you for your support! We couldn't do it without you.

AUCTION DONORS Kelly Wright Matt Robinson

Matt and Kristin Moseley

Rosalind Wiseman

Linda Lowry

Andy Mann

Melinda Smith Haymons Studio Amanda Deer Kristen Bodecker

Lance Kittel Kendra Scott Sophia Zengierski

Jane Enterline Trenna Daniels

Rachel Lyon Charlotte Vick Pam Treischel

Trenna Daniells

PARTNERS Thank you to our wonderful partners and collaborators!

FINANCIALS REVENUE The organization's 2020 revenue was $230,398.

Businesses/Corporate 12.3% Individuals 15.2%

Foundations/Grants 72.5%

EXPENSES Plastic Prevention 30% Ocean Protection 44%

Administration 11%

Watershed Health 15%

Staff Vicki Nichols Goldstein, Founder & Executive Director Caoilfhionn Schwab, Chapter Capacity Coordinator Christine Evans, Program & Communications Manager Melissa Jung, Community Engagement Manager Michelle Kaufman, Operations Manager Lance Kittel, Chapter Development Manager Sophia Zengierski, Development & Communications Manager Taylor Shedd, Ocean Policy Manager

Advisory Board Kelly Webb, Chair Ash Heather Christine Jochim Christopher Shrope Debbie Welles Erin Cooper Matthew Moseley

Michael Dirks Nicolas Biber Patrick Chandler Susan Bruce Ted Ross Whitney Wise

Interns Dawn Rodriguez Emerson Damiano Hailey Kutcher

Ingrid Martinson Maddie Chase Mallory McKenna

Chapter Leads Alaska - Whitney Leigh Arizona - Kristin Wisneski-Blum and Lorelei Redmond Buffalo, NY - Stephanie Krueger Central Texas - George Cummings Colorado - Angie Joerin Colorado State University - Mallory McKenna Michigan (Great Lakes) - Julie Ellstrom Illinois - Chris Wells Montana - Regan Nelson and Ivy Fredrickson North Texas - April Tovar University of Michigan - Maria Gebris University of Colorado - Abbey Turner Utah - Tricia Petzold Washington, D.C. - Becca Christoff and Lucy Hurlbut Wyoming - Kelly Wright

INLAND OCEAN COALITION www.inlandoceancoalition.org info@inlandoceancoalition.org

@inlandoceancoalition

www.facebook.com/InlandOcean

@InlandOceanCo

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT The Inland Ocean Coalition is a project of The Ocean Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.