Sophie Kim (she/her) is a 16-year-old climate activist representing the United States. Growing up by the coast for much of her life, she has witnessed firsthand both the awe-inspiring beauty of nature and the devastating and long-lasting impacts of human activity. A love and appreciation for nature was instilled in her from a young age by her surroundings and experiences, which led her to become involved with the environmental activism movement.
One of her most profound memories is that of an oil spill off the coast of her hometown in 2021, which resulted in thousands of gallons of petroleum being dumped into the ocean near a protected salt marsh ecological reserve. The moment motivated and inspired her to continue fighting for the environment in any way she could, and it made her realize that no one is immune to the impacts of pollution and climate change.
When she was in 6th grade, Sophie founded an organization called The Clean & Green Initiative (TCAGI). The organization began as a welcoming and safe online community for people from all around the world to support each other and discuss issues related to the environment, but it quickly grew into much more. Today, TCAGI is a youth-led nonprofit organization with an international reach, comprised of 700+ members spanning 30+ countries. TCAGI also has a team of 20+ dedicated volunteers helping out with facilitating its projects, which include a blog written by youth climate activists, a YouTube series featuring climate heroes such as Saoirse Exton and Mitzi Jonelle Tan, a series of children’s books related to environmental topics, and a food waste audit and report. TCAGI has been supported by the Jane Goodall Institute, the National Contribution Project, and DoSomething.org, as well as featured on publications by Civics Unplugged and Blue Shield. TCAGI is open for anyone to join by visiting tcagi.org/join-our-team!
Sophie has also served on the United States Youth Advisory Council to the United Nations Ocean Decade. During her time on the Council, she was able to connect with other youth changemakers from across the United States and lobby lawmakers in Washington to support ocean-friendly legislation. She loved the experience last year and is beyond excited to be returning to the Council this year as a co-chair for the Movement Committee!
Recently, Sophie has been working on a few passion projects in the political realm related to voter registration and depolarization ahead of the 2024 elections. She hopes to create a world where people can put their differences aside to work together on solving pressing issues.
Outside of activism, Sophie adores going on long, philosophical bike rides and stargazing, as well as writing letters to pen pals and learning languages. She is incredibly honored to be serving as a representative of the United States to the World Ocean Day Youth Advisory Council, and she is looking forward to what the future may hold!