"From Fear to Frontier" | Forbah Sandra N. — Leading Ocean Literacy and Environmental Education.

She learned to swim two years ago. Now she's teaching kids in Cameroon to dive.Forbah Sandra Ngwemetoh grew up in Limbe — a coastal city on the edge of the Atlantic, inside one of the most biodiverse marine environments in Africa. Environmental science wasn't in the curriculum. Ocean literacy didn't exist in her school. When she became an educator and asked her students what careers they dreamed of, 98% said doctor. Zero said anything connected to the ocean.So she built a bridge.Through her nonprofit BRIDGES, Forbah is doing something that has never been done in her community. She's teaching photography as a career path. She's teaching swimming as the first step toward becoming a marine biologist or an underwater cinematographer. She introduced swimming into her program two years ago. That's when she first learned to swim herself.Since then, she has dived to 18 meters off South Africa as part of the National Geographic Explorer network. She came back to Limbe and told her students: I've seen what's down there. It's extraordinary. And you can have a career studying it. In 2024, she was nominated as a National Geographic Young Explorer.In this episode, Scott and Forbah talk about:— Building an environmental education program where the concept has never existed— How Forbah went from wanting to be a doctor to becoming one of Africa's most compelling young ocean advocates— The Ocean Splash Academy — what it is, what it needs, and what it will take to make it permanent— Why ocean literacy is an economic issue, not just an environmental one— What it takes to start something from nothing in a place where nobody has done it beforeCameroon has 28 million people. Forbah is, as far as she knows, the only person doing this work.If you work in ocean conservation or environmental education — this is for you. If you're a parent trying to raise a kid who cares about the planet — this is for you. If you've ever built something from nothing and wondered whether it was enough — this is for you.ABOUT FORBAH2024 National Geographic Young Explorer, environmental educator, and founder of Bridges and the Ocean Splash Academy in Limbe, Cameroon. Find her work at bridgesforocean.org.ABOUT YOUR HOSTScott Shepherd is a dad, burrito aficionado, surfer, educator, and founder of Wildward Institute, based in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. 15 years in outdoor and environmental education, including California State Parks, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and High Tech Elementary. Find him at wildwardinstitute.net.SUPPORT BRIDGESThe Ocean Splash Academy needs books, VR headsets, volunteers, and a building fund. Reach out at bridgesforocean.org.New episodes every week. Subscribe and share this with one person who needs to hear it.