Stepping Into the Unknown: Embracing Growth with Youth to Sea 

Lindsymae Corpuz is an 18-year-old environmentalist and student in the 2023 Youth to Sea Montreal cohort. She is deeply passionate about connecting with nature and the ocean through avenues such as writing, photography and documentary-making. Through her participation in the program, Lindsymae aims to expand her knowledge of marine ecosystems and conservation. Lindymae and 19 other youth ambassadors from the Montreal region went on a three-day camping trip to kick off the Youth to Sea program. This is her reflection: Stepping Into the Unknown: Embracing Growth with Youth to Sea.

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Stepping Into the Unknown with Youth to Sea: Embracing Growth through Camping

That first step out of your comfort zone is always the scariest one to take. Especially when that first step means going on a three-day camping excursion with a group of people you have never met before.  

I would be lying if I said that I was not a tad bit stressed about spending a weekend with strangers, but knowing that we were all going to be there for a common cause was reassuring. That being said, I was excited nonetheless to be spending some time away from the city. 

In fact, on the first morning of the camping trip, I had woken up at 6 a.m. and gone outside to do some journaling. I sat on a picnic table and wrote away, listening to the birds sing and hearing the faint sound of water in the background. In that moment, in spite of the cool morning breeze, I remember feeling at peace.  

In that journal entry, I had written about how there was not one moment where I felt out of place,  despite it being the first time I was meeting everyone in person. After only the first night, the ambassadors were already establishing a sense of community.

Creating Connections and Positive Change

During this trip, not only did I get to talk to and connect with new people, I also got to discover a bit more about various issues related to ocean conservation through workshops, such as performing short skits. During this workshop we created a skit to present in small groups. The goal was to illustrate environmental issues with some possible solutions to problems like extreme weather and overfishing. While watching the skits, I was surprised at how knowledgeable people were and I admired everyone’s passion for creating positive change. 

All in all, if there’s one thing I took away from that whole weekend, it’s that you can always learn a thing or two from those around you. All you have to do is take that first step out of your comfort zone, stepping into the unknown. By doing this you will open yourself up to new experiences.