When Katie Joseff heard about a 12-year-old boy in upstate New York becoming a local celebrity after winning an Earth Day scavenger hunt, she knew she wanted to bring that to her hometown.
Joseff, a Santa Barbara native, is soon to launch an environmental-themed scavenger hunt for a chance at a $500 prize for first place, as well as smaller prizes from local businesses along the way.
It will officially kick off Saturday—the same day as the Solstice Parade, where the scavenger hunt will have a presence at Alameda Park—and conclude Aug. 31. Participants can join any time via the Goosechase app.
A love for the ocean is at the core of the scavenger hunt.
“There are so many things that are taking our attention all the time,” Joseff said. “But if we can come together around something that we love…it can actually create this positive feedback loop in staying engaged and empowered.”
“The Summer of Ocean Love” scavenger hunt encourages residents of all ages to get out into their community and earn points by completing “missions” throughout the city. Examples include a range of educational, civic and recreational activities, from a beach clean-up to visiting tide pools and creating a piece of art about it.
The philosophy underpinning the scavenger hunt is that greater community involvement is important for both individual wellbeing and a healthy democracy.
This sort of thinking was influenced by Joseff’s prior professional experience in which she worked to combat the spread of propaganda and misinformation on social media. She says social media is full of “polluted content” like fake stories and undisclosed political ads
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she read studies showing that performing repeated acts of kindness helped to reduce anxiety.
“The acts that make us feel better about ourselves,” such as volunteering or getting involved with issues in the community, “strengthen the fabric of our civic life and our democracy and our neighborhoods,” Joseff said.
She grew up swimming in Santa Barbara’s oceans and going to kelp forests. For the last few months, she’s been trying to find ways to increase civic imagination and civic engagement.
“What makes things really exciting is by making them local,” Joseff said.
Scavenger hunt missions may involve participants reading and acting on local threats to the ocean, such as the restart of the Sable pipeline, but Joseff said she doesn’t want to force anyone to take political action. Some participants may choose to attend an oil ordinance meeting, read up on relevant legislation about energy usage or attend an event about the Santa Barbara Channel.
The scavenger hunt partners with several local environmental organizations, such as the Community Environmental Council, Santa Barbara Channelkeeper and 805Action.
“When we come together to support these organizations and love of our ocean, we can actually make serious change because it’s building on these decades of work,” Joseff said.
