Let islands lead the way.
Right now, islands are some of Earth's most endangered places. But the same limitations that put islands at risk also make them resilient and innovative — qualities essential for life in a climate crisis. We come from islands, and we want to connect with people and ideas working to save island communities. We believe our most vulnerable places can be our strongest teachers.
Life on an island often means limiting consumption, looking after your neighbors, and constant creative problem-solving. Islanders often hold deep connections to place and maintain more ecologically sustainable ways of living. Recognizing the potential of island communities as environmental experts, leaders, and teachers can empower grassroots climate action, keeping opportunity close to home while spreading benefits far and wide.
As sea levels rise and extreme weather events become more frequent, island ways of life are threatened. The FEO Project isn't only about islands as a source of climate solutions for everyone else, but it's about preserving island life & wisdom. The cross-pollination of island innovations throughout our voyage will hopefully be one key way that this project’s approach does more than just share the work it finds, but adds something of value in return.
2. Use storytelling as a tool
Humans have always been storytellers — stories tell us who we are, where we've come from, and where we're going. The stories we tell are the world we make. They shape our culture and also have the power to shake it up. To combat the climate crisis, a good shaking is what we need.
Our intention is to tell visually engaging, emotionally moving stories about people and the places they care for. We want our stories to help island innovations reach a wider audience of supporters and funders, inspire others to see and live amongst the natural world in new & better ways, and motivate other adventurers and storytellers to pursue low-carbon methods of moving and making.
This project is a process. The boat intends to be a floating lab for workshopping environmental communication practices, implementing writing, photo, video, and audio to figure out what works best.
3. Adventure as we wish to live
We urgently need to decarbonize everything we do, and sailing is a pretty tried & true way to do that.
A sailboat itself is like a little island — its limitations make it a great place to explore low-carbon, low-tech, and sustainable ways of living. This decarbonization may mean we don't always get exactly what we want, arrive on time, or fit into bigger systems so neatly, but that can be a really good thing for both us & our environment. We want to share the lessons (and fun!) to be found in sailing's resource-restricted way of life.
Moving through time & space at the speed of the wind is also an opportunity to commune deeply with nature, at nature's pace — we hope sharing this feeling can inspire others to slow down, take a closer look, and live in awe and gratitude for our planet.
4. Create in service of others
Ultimately, we want our stories to generate financial and logistical support for promising projects to succeed and expand.
We hope the high-quality media we produce can generate attention for our partner organizations and be a resource for their communication strategies as they raise funds and grow. We also believe that if The FEO Project can build an engaged audience, that audience will bring new resources to the island communities we're working with.
We also want our voyage to support community-building between environmental problem-solvers — a network of grassroots projects that cross-pollinate and inspire one another. Perhaps sargassum biofuels on Grenada provide valuable insights for seaweed products in Maine, while agroecologists in Cuba offer systems thinking approaches to solar micro-grid projects in Puerto Rico. This kind of cooperation means more & better climate action everywhere.
We hope our work inspires climate action amongst people living far from islands, too. Telling stories of individuals deeply caring for the places & ways of life they love is the engine of optimism we're relying on. For those following The FEO Project without the means to materially support our partners, our stories may just inspire them to engage with climate action in their own ways, closer to home. Even one such change would be worth the trip.
