TAMPA, Fla. — Bay area students will engage in some friendly competition to help clean-up the community and help raise awareness about protecting the environment this Earth Day.

SCUBAnauts International introduces kids to science and environmental education early. Mackenzie Hall, 15, and Josiah Keup, 14, are part of the program and will participate in clean-up efforts April 22.

What You Need To Know

  • SCUBAnauts International is a marine science program that focuses on environmental education

  • One goal of the program is to empower teens to become tomorrow’s leaders

  • The group will lend a helping hand on Earth Day and clean-up while engaging in some friendly competition

“It’s heartbreaking, I hate when people don’t throw away their trash,” said Hall. “You can just keep it until you get home, throw it in the trash can, you don’t have to throw it on the ground, it harms the animals and the environment.”

The high schoolers hope to help make a difference.

“I’m a big kind of nature geek, so I’d like to prevent animals from going extinct,” said Keup, who has plans to join the Navy and serve as a medic.

SCUBAnauts International is a marine science program that focuses on environmental education through underwater exploration and community outreach.

“I enjoy doing conservation and I enjoy being out in nature, so I can combine the two," said Keup. "I’m enjoying the view while I’m picking up trash, I’m enjoying something myself and I’m helping society.”

One goal of the program is to empower teens to become tomorrow’s leaders. The group will lend a helping hand on Earth Day and clean-up while engaging in some friendly competition. The six SCUBAnauts International chapters will see which one can pick-up the most trash and raise the most money. Fundraising efforts will go toward research and scholarships.

Chief Operating Officer Katie Cooper says the students are an inspiration.

“We only have one earth and they’re going to live on it a lot longer than we are, so to see them so investing in improving their community and asking the community to do the same gives a lot of hope,” said Cooper.

Hall hopes to make a difference.

“I can help tell other people and introduce them to be doing good things helping the environment,” said Hall who aspires to be a marine biologist.

The group’s goal is to collect more than the 3,000 pounds it collected in 2023.