February 11, 2025 • 32 mins
What drives someone to transform a personal passion into a movement with global impact? Join us as Anita Kolni, the visionary founder of the Ocean Lovers Festival, reveals how her commitment to ocean conservation inspired the creation of a vibrant festival that captivates and educates.
Anita's story is a testament to how an individual's love for the ocean can blossom into a platform merging ideas, art, music, and tangible actions to combat climate anxiety, particularly among younger generations. Discover how, by partnering with universities, environmental organisations, and well-known figures, Anita has crafted a community that celebrates the ocean and champions its conservation.
Navigating the complexities of funding and engaging a young audience hasn't been without challenges, but the Ocean Lovers Festival has seen significant breakthroughs. Anita shares insights on how the festival has successfully shifted from sponsorship reliance to attracting support from companies with strong environmental goals. Educational initiatives like Fish Tank, Literati, and the Ocean Smart Schools program are pivotal in inspiring future ocean advocates. Through initiatives like the Sea Science Student Expo, young people gain exposure to diverse career opportunities while facilitating a deeper connection with the environment.
Anita's vision extends beyond the festival's immediate impact, aiming for a future where humans reconnect with nature and commit to sustainable actions. With an impressive reach—40,000 attendees in Bondi and a media footprint of 34 million—the festival has a profound influence, inspiring meaningful change in the lives of its participants.
As the festival prepares to expand across Sydney in March 2025, we invite you to explore the myriad of engaging activities available, from talks hosted by ABC Radio National to insightful episodes of the Ocean Ideas podcast series. Be part of this collective effort to champion ocean conservation and make a lasting difference.
For More Info, visit www.oceanloversfestival.com
Thank you for listening!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Leon Goltsman (00:00):
Hello and welcome back to Engaging Conversations.
I'm Leon Goltsman and it'sgreat to have you here for
another inspiring andaction-packed episode.
This show isn't just aboutideas.
It's about bold action, realinnovation and the people making
things happen.
We give a voice to changemakersand dive into the breakthroughs
shaping the world, startingright here in our communities.
(00:23):
But before we get started, abig thank you to our valued
sponsor, Niaz Cannoth, Principaland Lending Specialist at
Invest Intelligence.
Niaz is passionate aboutsocially responsible investment
strategies, particularly indisability accommodation.
Your support makesconversations like these
possible and we truly appreciateit.
(00:45):
Now, today's conversation is onethat truly stands out.
We're not just talking aboutenvironmental awareness.
We're talking about real actionand real impact, because, at
the end of the day, big ideasare great, but it's the
trailblazers who bring them tolife that truly inspire us, and
today's guest, Anita Kolni,founder of Ocean Lovers Festival
, is one of those trailblazers.
(01:06):
What started off as a localinitiative in Bondi is now
influencing councils acrossAustralia, proving that a
festival can be so much morethan just an event.
It can be a catalyst for realchange.
Anita and her team are helpingcorporations meet their
environmental targets, butwhat's more important is that
they're empowering everydaypeople children, teachers,
(01:27):
businesses to become changemakers.
From underwater drones toseahorse hotels, from
dissolvable fishhooks totackling microplastic pollution,
her work is as creative as itis impactful.
But what I love most about thisconversation, it's about legacy
how one person's passion anddetermination can inspire
(01:47):
generations to takeresponsibility for our oceans
and our planet.
So, without further ado, let'sjump right into it.
Anita Kolni (01:55):
Hi, I'm Anita, founder of the Ocean Lovers
Festival, and I live in theeastern suburbs in Sydney.
So I'm a mum of four kids and Igrew up enjoying all there is
to love about our beautifulocean and waterways.
I'm the first person in myfamily born in Australia.
I fell in love with, you know,just growing up by the beach,
(02:17):
that was just the lifestyle thatI ended up almost taking for
granted.
And as my kids grew up and Irealized that, you know, if I
don't do something to changethis, my children and my
grandchildren in particular arenever going to have the
opportunity to enjoy thelifestyle that I've enjoyed
already.
Today there's so much climateanxiety with children and so
much going on.
So I thought what can I do?
(02:39):
And I was coming across allthese incredible ideas and
solutions.
I thought what better way tomake people more aware and bring
attention to what we can dothan creating a festival where
the community can connect withideas, solutions and innovation,
because there's so many greatideas out there, but there is no
(03:01):
vehicle or platform to connecteveryone, and that was basically
the basis and the premise ofthe festival.
Leon Goltsman (03:07):
So, anita, how did you design the festival to
go beyond entertainment andcreate real worldwide impact for
ocean conservation?
Anita Kolni (03:14):
When we had our first festival in Bondi, people
weren't sure if we wereenvironmental event or if we
were a sporting event.
So we really had to go away andput a lot of thought into how
people were going to perceivethe festival.
So we came up with our threepillars, which was ideas, art,
music and actions for the ocean,so people would understand more
(03:37):
what they were going to comeand find.
And we started working with allthe universities and the Sydney
Institute of Marine Science andthe Maritime Museum and the
Prince Albert Foundation and allthese other amazing
institutions and organisationsgot behind us and we thought
we've got to find a way toconnect this with the public.
So the festival was a fun wayto do that, and when people go
(03:59):
out and they have fun you knowpeople don't want to go out and
be educated in their time offbut if people go out and have
fun and they feel inspired, thenthey're much more likely to
create change.
Leon Goltsman (04:10):
So our goal was really to inspire and empower
people, because then you'regoing to create a movement that
starts to create change andwhilst you've gone and inspired
people, you designed a festivalthat just it doesn't just
provide a place or a locationfor people to attend, but you've
gone beyond entertainment.
You know, some of the things isyou've been uniting politicians
(04:31):
, celebrities, activists.
What's the key to getting sucha diverse and influential people
to collaborate on oceanconservation?
Anita Kolni (04:39):
Well, I think the key is that the festival has
become recognised as a trustedsource of knowledge and a
community and grassrootsmovement, and that makes people
from all walks of life want toparticipate and want to come and
share what they have to share.
So we have been very focused onchecking our resources and
(05:02):
making sure that anybody thatwe're working with is truly
aligned with our values, so thatwe can, in an era of
misinformation, we want toremain a trusted source of
knowledge, which is what we'vegrown into, and so that's a
really important thing wherewe're uniting business leaders
(05:22):
and politicians and other peopleto come and feel inspired and
find out about how some of theways other businesses are doing
it, because a lot of people feel, or a lot of businesses
actually feel, that it's ahindrance to put sustainability
and blue and green into theirfocus.
But when you hear from otherbusinesses that are doing it and
realising that it's actuallybenefiting and increasing their
(05:45):
businesses, then it can inspire,and from other businesses that
are doing it and realizing thatit's actually benefiting and
increasing their businesses,then it can inspire and
encourage other businesses to dothe same.
Leon Goltsman (05:51):
So you've had high profile figures like the
Bondi Rescue Lifeguards andother influential names.
So how has the celebrityinvolvement helped spread your
message and what role do youthink they play in shifting
public attitudes towardsconservation?
Anita Kolni (06:04):
We've been very fortunate to get some really
incredible people behind thefestival.
Even in our first year we hadGeorge Miller come and open our
festival for us, which was agreat win, and he's a true
environmentalist and loves theocean and having people like the
Prince Albert Foundation thatgot involved earlier on.
(06:26):
And Sylvia Earle, who, forpeople who don't know her, she's
like the David Attenboroughmarine science and has been
named first hero for the planet.
And then we've got our own,valerie Taylor here in Australia
, who's an absolute legend.
So getting some of those peoplebehind us in the early days has
helped build our credibility asa platform.
Um, it's been harder to getsome real like high profile
(06:50):
celebrities because you've gotto prove yourself before they
want to put your their name toit.
But we have been introduced toHugh Jackman, who unfortunately
couldn't participate this yearbecause he had a bit too much on
, and he's a Bondi local when heis in Australia and I really
think that's something that willhelp us grow the festival even
more.
And we have some incredibleambassadors, like Lisa Blair,
(07:13):
who's a solo world record holdersailor who's sailed around the
world and collects microplasticand does some incredible
research along the way.
We've actually just got MissEarth, miss Australia, who who's
joined us this year, and we'regoing out to a lot of new
ambassadors this year.
Part of that is actually thatwe've been a Bondi event for
(07:35):
four years, with fourcancellations because of COVID,
and we're not the only ones.
Everyone had to go through thatdifficult time, but it did make
it very difficult that we'donly just delivered our first
event before all that time.
So being a Bondi-centric eventwas a fantastic stage.
Bondi was like it has such astrong community feel, but it's
(07:55):
a real international stage andit has international appeal.
But from a sponsor and asupporter point of view, I think
it still feels too local, eventhough we're doing things that
are not just local.
It still feels too local to getthe kind of support behind us
that it takes to run a movementlike this.
(08:15):
We've been encouraged for a longtime by the Australian National
Maritime Museum and some of ourother partners to take the
festival much broader and wider,and we had been invited to take
it to Dubai last year for COP28.
We've been invited to take thefestival much broader and wider,
and we had been invited to takeit to Dubai last year for COP28
.
We've been invited to take it toFremantle and lots of other
places, but I felt thatdeveloping an opportunity and
(08:35):
expanding it across Sydney wouldbe the first, the best place to
start, because we have alreadybuilt such a great movement here
in Bondi.
We have already built such agreat movement here in Bondi.
We have people coming from allover Sydney and from interstate
to our Bondi event and we'reactually expanding it from a
four day, four or five day eventin Bondi into a month focused
(08:55):
on ocean around Sydney, whichenables us to get a lot more
support from Destination NewSouth Wales and really puts us
more on a global stage than everbefore.
So our goal is really to becomea global landmark event by 2030
, which is the end of the UnitedNations Ocean Decade, and this
(09:15):
brings in amazing opportunities,because now not only do we have
the opportunity to showcasesome of the best innovation
that's happening here inAustralia.
We'll be inviting people fromoverseas to come and showcase
some of their best innovationthat's happening here in
Australia.
We'll be inviting people fromoverseas to come and showcase
some of their incredibleinnovation and science and
solutions for the ocean and,from a partner and sponsor
opportunity, it gives them theopportunity now to brand across
(09:37):
Sydney for a whole month ofMarch, which is a huge
opportunity.
Leon Goltsman (09:41):
I can see why and how this is of state
significance.
How do you ensure that thefestival not only thrives as an
event, but also deliversmeasurable benefits for sponsors
and partners who support it?
Anita Kolni (09:53):
I think all organisations today feel a real
responsibility to not begreenwashing and to actually be
doing the right thing, and weare such a great vehicle for
that because we are doing thatright thing.
I mean our goal is to spreadhope and do so by educating,
increasing awareness andbringing you know, increasing
(10:16):
ocean literacy and growing thatto as many people as possible,
because you cannot createbehavior change if you can't
influence people and make themmore aware of something.
If you want to create change,you need to influence people and
make them more aware ofsomething.
If you want to create change,you need to make people aware of
something, because people can'tchange what they're not aware
of.
So our goal is to growawareness and educate people as
much as possible on what's goingon in the ocean and climate and
(10:40):
biodiversity space in general,because the more aware you are,
the more change you can make.
You can't change something thatyou're not aware of.
Leon Goltsman (10:47):
So creating a large-scale, impact-driven event
isn't without its obstacles.
What has been the biggestchallenges you've faced in
organising the festival and whatbreakthroughs have kept you
pushing forward?
Anita Kolni (10:58):
One of the biggest challenges is definitely funding
.
When you're a new start-up andin the environmental place, the
ocean has less funding than anyother environmental initiatives.
Funnily enough, and the oceanis actually at the heart of the
climate crisis.
We all need the ocean tosurvive.
Two out of every three breathswe take come from the ocean and
without the ocean, there's nosurvival of humanity and our
(11:19):
planet.
It's a real challenge whenyou're a new business.
You've got to prove yourself.
We're a not-for-profit, we can.
We raise donations and grantsand sponsorships, and I have
seen a shift in our funding frommore sponsorships to companies
donating through theirfoundations as well, because
(11:41):
that does tick a lot of theirenvironmental ESG boxes and
things like that.
So there's a big shift actuallyin the kind of organizations
that are following us.
Our principal partner, imc, isa futures trading firm from the
Netherlands.
They have a lot of focus onsustainability and their staff's
main three interests areenvironment, education and
(12:02):
community and we tick all thoseboxes.
So it's their staff, that kindof direct, where they're going
to be putting their money.
It was a very important lessonfor me to recognise that we give
a lot of opportunities forcorporate organisations to reach
a lot of their targets and toinvolve their staff, to make
them feel more engaged withwhat's going on in the
(12:25):
environmental space and givethem that power that they also
can become change makers andadvocates.
Leon Goltsman (12:30):
So you mentioned when we just started this
conversation you've done thisfor your children and for the
next generation.
How does Ocean Lovers Festivalengage young people and what has
been the most rewardingresponse from the next
generation?
Anita Kolni (12:42):
Our education program is one of the like my
highlights of the festival,because when I see the look of
the children's faces when theycome to the festival, it just
makes me feel like I'm making adifference.
We have a growing school program.
It started off with a schoolexcursion that children came
(13:03):
down to the festival and we hadabout 200 children in the first
year that we did it and thatlaunched in our second year
actually, or third year, becausethe festival and we had about
200 children in the first yearthat we did it and that launched
in our second year actually, orthird year, because the second
year we got cancelled and we hadover 200 and something children
that were booked to come downand last minute we got an influx
of kids and we had almost 400children that came down.
I think it was 380 in the firstyear.
(13:24):
Now we're at or something whichis the capacity for the junior
schools, but the children comedown and they do amazing
engaging activities, fromdriving underwater drones with
the Maritime Museum to buildingseahorse hotels that they then
got the coordinates that theycould actually follow when they
(13:44):
were deployed off Port Stephensto see how these hotels were
actually repairing the homeenvironment for seahorses living
under the water.
Leon Goltsman (13:52):
Well, that's one way of getting kids off the
screen, isn't it?
Anita Kolni (13:55):
Absolutely, and then we had some incredible
speakers in and they learnedabout microplastic and the
impacts.
But then we've also launchedsome great initiatives for
schools to do year-round, andthis is something that we're
really growing.
So we're now in our second yearof Fish Tank.
Fish Tank is our totalwrite-off of Shark Tank, where
we encourage kids to share theirgreat ideas for the ocean, and
(14:17):
we've had some of the mostinspiring ideas, from artificial
upwelling to solar-poweredcargo ships to dissolvable
fishhooks and really, reallyclever ideas and we've got
$10,000 in funding from partnersas prize money for these
incredible ideas, and we'restarting to work with
universities and other people tosee if some of these ideas can
(14:39):
then be developed to a nextstage if they come up with great
ideas.
We also have anothercompetition called Literati,
which has been going for a fewmore years, where children make
artwork out of things that couldend up in the ocean and then
they share their messages forthe ocean.
So they're actually exploringand understanding in real, in
real terms, the impact of litteron the ocean, which they don't
(15:01):
just do if someone says oh, canyou pick up that piece of
rubbish and put it in the binbecause it's not good for the
fish and they're learning tounderstand that.
And this year I'm reallyexcited we're launching a new
program called Ocean SmartSchools, which is actually going
to bring be an incursionprogram delivering straight to
the schools workshops straightto schools.
So we're partnering withphysics education, who have been
(15:23):
delivering science to schoolsfor over 20 years, to bring
these workshops straight intoschools across New South Wales
and Victoria and we're lookingat taking that around the
country.
Another initiative that we'redoing with the schools which I'm
really excited about is our SeaScience Student Expo.
So that's aimed at studentsfrom Year 9 to 12 to showcase
(15:45):
some of the careers and careeropportunities related to ocean,
which are much broader than alot of students would think.
So they might think that it'slimited to being a marine
scientist, but we've hadaquarists and so many different
people that are in differentcareers come and present to the
children or students, should Isay, because there are so many
opportunities, from accountingto technology to business.
(16:10):
There are many, many differentways students can get involved.
We had 700 students booked lastyear.
We lost a few because itclashed with NAPLAN,
unfortunately, and we've movedthat this year to the Maritime
Museum, who are partnering tohelp us deliver that event and
it's going to be an amazing dayon the 14th of March and that is
(16:31):
also to make it a lot moreaccessible to schools across
Sydney.
Leon Goltsman (16:35):
I think a lot of the teachers want to partake and
learn from that as well.
Anita Kolni (16:38):
Absolutely.
That's the whole point.
We want to communicate with theteachers, with the students,
and we hope they all come backwith their families on the
weekends of the festival toengage and learn more and get
their families more involved.
We've got some amazing like aspart of our expansion this year.
We're not just doing our fouror five days in Bondi, we're
also doing a whole weekend ofactivities in Darling Harbour
(17:00):
where we'll have markets andtrashing shows, a sustainable
boating showcase.
There's a dive show happeningin, a recreational dive show
happening at the icc.
We've got imax that are going tobe screening ocean
documentaries throughout thewhole month of march from
thursdays to sundays.
The fish markets are doingsustainable cooking classes with
(17:21):
celebrity and indigenous chefsand behind the scenes
sustainable tours.
We're doing some indigenousharbor tours with tribal warrior
and we're partnering with thedepartment of primary industries
to showcase project restore,which is a big government
initiative to restore sydneyharbor and the landscape of
sydney harbor and also protectthe fairy penguins and and the
(17:42):
seals, so that actually thatinitiative.
We're doing some ferry trips inSydney Harbour where people can
book online to join a ferrytrip on the 5th or the 12th of
March and they can take a ferryacross and learn about some of
the restoration projectshappening in Sydney Harbour,
from crayweed to living seawalltiles.
Do a behind-the-scenes tour atthe Sydney Institute of Marine
(18:03):
Science in Chowder Bay and thenhead over to Taronga Zoo and
meet with the seal experts andfairy penguins.
Leon Goltsman (18:10):
That's getting a completely different perspective
of what Sydney has to offer.
There's a lot of heart thatgoes behind Ocean Lovers
Festival, but there's alsoserious science backing the
movement.
How do you integrate scientificresearch into the festival and
what discoveries or solutionshave been shared that give you
hope for the ocean's futurefestival and what discoveries or
solutions have been shared thatgive you hope for the ocean's
(18:30):
future.
Anita Kolni (18:30):
So, as a festival, we aim not to replicate what
anyone is doing, but to be aplatform for all the incredible
scientists and innovation andtechnology that's happening in
the ocean space.
So we are fortunate enough tomeet with some incredible
innovators.
We've met early on in our daysat the festival with people like
(18:50):
Tim Silverwood, who was one ofthe co-founders of Take Three
for the Sea and now is doingOcean Impact Organisation, which
is Australia's first oceanaccelerator program for
start-ups.
And we have discovered someincredible ideas like Seabin
that started off by two localAustralian surfers clean rubbish
out of the out of harbors andnow it's become a really they've
(19:13):
actually created it's like adata collection um that I can't
even go into all the details.
It's just such a clever idea.
You'll have to look more intoit and you can meet them at the
festival we might have to putthat in the show notes as well
absolutely.
Uh, you can put a link to seebin uh.
Then there's also uh halbot,which is a new technology that's
been created out of some uhyoung technology and um
(19:39):
scientists out of sydney unithat have created these amazing
underwater drones to clean cleanthe bottom of boats, because
the bottom of boats create a lotof pollution in the harbour and
it also creates the boats dragmore, so actually they have to
use more fuel and things likethat.
So they've showcased at some ofour festivals and to our
(20:00):
students and we bring them intoevery opportunity.
All the people that we meetthrough the festival we bring
into other opportunities.
So whenever we see anopportunity to connect people,
we do, and one of the biggestthings that we found with the
festival is that it's a realconnector.
We've connected some incredibleorganizations uh through our
day.
At our first festival we had thegamay rangers, which is our
(20:23):
first new south wales sea rRangers Indigenous Sea Rangers
that came to our festival intheir first year and they met
with the beautiful team atSydney Institute of Marine
Science and the University ofNew South Wales and now they're
collaborating on projects acrossSydney Harbour doing
restoration with seaweed and thecrayweed and the living seawall
(20:46):
tiles and training their youngrangers at the University of New
South Wales, and our beautifulambassador, vanessa Perotta, who
developed the Snotbottechnology, where they actually
go and collect snot from whalesand dolphins to monitor their
health, which was actuallypioneered off Bondi Beach.
She's actually gotten somescholarships for the new female
(21:08):
ranger team that's coming outnext week.
We've had Sea Shepherd that'scollaborated with CSIRO and
University of New South Wales.
So all these incrediblecollaborations are accelerating
the impact at which we can helpbe a vehicle to accelerate
change for the ocean, positiveimpact for the ocean.
Leon Goltsman (21:28):
And all this positive change just makes us
realise that the ocean doesn'tjust belong to one place, it's a
global entity.
So naturally, the questionarises do you see the Ocean
Lovers Festival model expandinginternationally, and what would
it take to make that vision areality?
Anita Kolni (21:44):
I do see the festival going a lot of places.
Vision a reality.
I do see the festival going alot of places.
My goal at this stage is toreally make sure we establish a
very strong festival here inSydney and we actually have the
Sunshine Coast Council flyingover for the festival this March
because they're interested inbringing it over to the Sunshine
Coast and other places inQueensland.
(22:05):
We have been over to Fremantleand WA is very interested in
hosting a festival as well.
We have been invited to take itoverseas as well, but my goal
is really to establish thismodel here in Sydney so that we
can package it up in a way thatwe can deliver it to as many
places as possible and yes, thatdoes include overseas.
Leon Goltsman (22:27):
So, with all your goals of taking it overseas and
deliver it to as many places aspossible and yes, that does
include overseas.
So, with all your goals oftaking it overseas, it's clear
that the festival is more thanjust one event.
It's about the future.
Anita, what legacy do you hopeOcean Lovers leaves behind, not
just for your children, but forthe world?
Anita Kolni (22:43):
I think we live in a time where people have
forgotten how important it isfor us to be, that we need to
live in symbiosis with nature.
We cannot survive without ourocean, we cannot survive without
nature, and every other specieson this planet seems to
remember that and it seems to bean instinct for them.
But I think we've lost thatinstinct and I think we need to
(23:06):
re-find and re-fall in love withour connection to our planet
and our connection to ourenvironment, because if we
really want to create change, weneed to be spreading awareness,
making lifestyle changes tocollectively have a big impact,
and that means that we all needto make our personal changes.
But that's not going to happenunless people really feel a need
(23:28):
, and that is refinding thatconnection with the environment,
to start with.
Leon Goltsman (23:32):
You are creating that need and you are creating
that awareness.
Congratulations and well done.
You know you've come a long wayand you still, and this is just
the beginning.
Now, people often leave eventsfeeling inspired, but
inspiration alone doesn't savethe ocean, does it?
Anita Kolni (23:47):
No, we all need to take action.
Inspiration alone will notsolve the problem.
Everybody has to take action.
From changing your habits athome.
Using less plastic, compostingum, voting with your dollar when
you go to the shops, changingyour super fund and changing
(24:08):
your bank are probably thebiggest things that you could do
, because it takes 10 minutes onthe phone to make those changes
and then you are literallyevery day, without even trying,
making positive changes for theenvironment.
Leon Goltsman (24:20):
So what's one simple but powerful action that
you wish everyone would takeafter attending the festival?
Anita Kolni (24:26):
When people come to the festival, we want them to
feel inspired and empowered towalk away and make change, and
we actually did a survey lastyear and over 75% of people that
come to the festival walkedaway saying that they wanted to
make changes in their life.
So that, for me, is a hugesuccess.
Leon Goltsman (24:45):
How many people does the Ocean Lovers impact?
Anita Kolni (24:48):
Our events impact so many people in so many
different ways.
Just in Bondi alone last year,we had 40,000 people come down
over the festival weekend periodand we're expecting over
100,000 this year with theexpanded Sydney Festival.
Our media combined media reachlast year was 34 million through
(25:09):
all our different avenues andwe had we've had over 5 000
students now engage in ourschool programs over the last
couple of years and we've had adirect impact on 12 of the 17
sustainable development goalsfrom the united nations
sustainable development goalsand we and we're very excited.
Actually we did a survey lastyear and we had 86% of people
(25:32):
that attended the festival thatsaid the experience encouraged
them to make changes in theirlife.
70% felt more optimistic fromattending the event, which I
think is a really importantstatistic, and 64% said that
they left the event feelingbetter informed about how they
can actually help protect theocean.
And a really exciting one was80% said they're coming back
(25:54):
again this year.
Leon Goltsman (25:55):
So you are making the impact that you had set out
to do, absolutely so, lookingback, what has been the most
emotional or meaningful momentfor you in this whole journey?
Anita Kolni (26:05):
Watching the festival grow.
It's like watching a child grow.
It's been quite amazing and thechallenges that we've had to
make it grow through you know avery tumultuous time on our
planet generally has been veryrewarding, I have to say, and
from my personal perspective.
I've gone from being astay-at-home mum to feeling like
(26:26):
I can change the world, andthat's and and that's what I'm
doing, and I'm watching thisfestival grow like a child into
something that's going to takeon a life of its own and
hopefully inspire and empowerpeople for generations to come.
Leon Goltsman (26:40):
Anita, you certainly are doing that, and
I'm sure that many listeners outthere would like to get
involved one way or another,whether it's a corporate or
anyone in our community.
So the question is, if peopledid want to get involved or find
out more information, whatwould they need to do?
Anita Kolni (26:56):
I'd start by saying visit oceanloversfestivalcom.
Go and check out our incredibleprogram for 2025, because there
is seriously something foreveryone.
Make sure to follow our socials, because that will keep you up
to date with all the latest newsand if you're interested in
backing us, please get incontact with me.
My details are on the website.
(27:17):
You can send through an inquiryand I will get back to you
personally.
We have raised more funds thanever before, going out to expand
the festival from five days inBondi to a whole month across
Sydney, but we still do need asmuch support as we can get to
deliver the best program and thebest festival yet.
Leon Goltsman (27:35):
You did mention March.
What day specifically, orparticularly in March?
Anita Kolni (27:40):
We have events happening throughout the month
and across six precincts inSydney.
So, like I said, check ourcalendar and you will find
something to do with your familyor with people that you know,
with your loved ones, butthere's two focal weekends.
One will be the weekend inDarling Harbour on the 15th and
16th of March and the other oneis our big Bondi Festival, which
(28:03):
is going to be from the 22ndand 23rd of March.
In the whole of Bondi andsurrounds, we have an incredible
talks program which is actuallypart of our year round
engagement with people as well.
Now it's called the OceanLovers Talks.
We have ABC Radio Nationalcoming to host three of them
this year and they came lastyear as well.
(28:23):
Three of them this year andthey came last year as well.
But we have such an incrediblelineup of experts talking about
everything from alternatives toshark nets to sustainable
seafood, to I can't even tellyou how many amazing topics.
So make sure you get online andcheck out that incredible
program and if you don't get achance to come down to the
festival, that's actually allgoing to be available through
(28:45):
our podcast series, ocean Ideas,which you can find through our
website or on Spotify andYouTube.
We're also launching the SydneyCoast Hope Spot Marine BioBlitz
this year, which will giveeveryone in the community an
opportunity to become a citizenscientist any time during the
month of March.
All you've got to do is checkout the Marine BioBlitz on our
(29:06):
website, download theiNaturalist app and head down to
the waterways and snap away andget some photos of any
creatures you see in the rockpools under the water, whether
you're snorkelling or doing abeach walk.
Anyone can participate and allthose findings will be analysed
by scientists to actually createa bit of a baseline of what
(29:28):
species and how healthy is ourharbour?
What's missing?
Sometimes we have new speciescoming down because of the
warmer waters that end up herefrom Queensland that aren't
normally meant to be here.
Some of those are good, some ofthose are bad, but you can all
participate in this event, whichis going to be our first year.
It's the inaugural bio blitz,but we are going to be doing
(29:49):
that on an annual basis.
So if anyone wants toparticipate in the marine bio
blitz, it's actually on anywherein the hawksbury shelf marine
bio region.
If you're living anywherebetween newcastle and woolongong
and within sydney harbour, we'dlove to encourage you.
Best place to find the link isto go to
theoceanloversfestivalcom andlook up the Marine BioBlitz and
(30:11):
you can find all the details onhow to participate.
Leon Goltsman (30:14):
So for all the Lake Macquarie and listeners and
Central Coast and Sutherlandthat can partake as well.
Anita Kolni (30:22):
Everybody can partake, as long as you're near
the water, or even if you're notliving near the water, head
down to the water and make sureto download the app and you will
be helping us create a baselineof what beautiful creatures or
not so beautiful creatures livein our beautiful Sydney Harbour
and surrounds.
Leon Goltsman (30:40):
Anita, thank you so much always a pleasure, and
thank you for being on thisprogram.
Thank you so much for Always apleasure and thank you for being
on this program.
Thank you so much for speakingwith us and keep up the great
work.
Thank you so much for having me, leon.
And that's a wrap on anotherincredible episode of Engaging
Conversations.
What a journey this has been.
Anita Kolni has given a powerfulinsight into what it truly
(31:02):
means to take action to protectour environment, drive change
and inspire others to do thesame.
And, one of the biggesttakeaways change happens when
people come together, and that'sexactly what the Ocean Lovers
Festival is all about.
Bigger than a movement, it's away for people to reconnect with
the ocean, the environment andeach other, and it's working,
(31:24):
with over 80% of attendees leftfeeling inspired to make
meaningful changes in theirlives.
This is a huge success forAnita and her team, for the
sponsors, the partners, thecouncils getting involved and
for everyone who believes in ahealthier planet.
Most importantly, it's a hugewin for future generations who
will inherit this world.
(31:45):
Now, that's something worthcelebrating!
So oceanloversfestival.
(32:05):
!What started in Bondi is now
spreading across Sydney, withQueensland and Western Australia
looking to bring it to theircommunities too, and last year
alone, the festival reached 34million people across media the
impact undeniable.
So if this conversation hassparked something in you, now's
the time to get involved.
The festival runs all monthacross Sydney, so check out
oceanloversfestivalcom to seewhat's on and how you can be a
part of it.
Bring your friends, your family, your colleagues.
There's something in it foreveryone and if you're like most
people who've been, you'll walkaway knowing it was absolutely
(32:29):
worth it.
A huge thank you to ouraudience, guests, sponsors and
the amazing team that makes thispodcast happen.
I'm Leon Goltsman.
Until next time, stay safe,stay inspired and let's keep
making a difference together.
Hello and welcome back to Engaging Conversations.
I'm Leon Goltsman and it'sgreat to have you here for
another inspiring andaction-packed episode.
This show isn't just aboutideas.
It's about bold action, realinnovation and the people making
things happen.
We give a voice to changemakersand dive into the breakthroughs
shaping the world, startingright here in our communities.
(00:23):
But before we get started, abig thank you to our valued
sponsor, Niaz Cannoth, Principaland Lending Specialist at
Invest Intelligence.
Niaz is passionate aboutsocially responsible investment
strategies, particularly indisability accommodation.
Your support makesconversations like these
possible and we truly appreciateit.
(00:45):
Now, today's conversation is onethat truly stands out.
We're not just talking aboutenvironmental awareness.
We're talking about real actionand real impact, because, at
the end of the day, big ideasare great, but it's the
trailblazers who bring them tolife that truly inspire us, and
today's guest, Anita Kolni,founder of Ocean Lovers Festival
, is one of those trailblazers.
(01:06):
What started off as a localinitiative in Bondi is now
influencing councils acrossAustralia, proving that a
festival can be so much morethan just an event.
It can be a catalyst for realchange.
Anita and her team are helpingcorporations meet their
environmental targets, butwhat's more important is that
they're empowering everydaypeople children, teachers,
(01:27):
businesses to become changemakers.
From underwater drones toseahorse hotels, from
dissolvable fishhooks totackling microplastic pollution,
her work is as creative as itis impactful.
But what I love most about thisconversation, it's about legacy
how one person's passion anddetermination can inspire
(01:47):
generations to takeresponsibility for our oceans
and our planet.
So, without further ado, let'sjump right into it.
Anita Kolni (01:55):
Hi, I'm Anita, founder of the Ocean Lovers
Festival, and I live in theeastern suburbs in Sydney.
So I'm a mum of four kids and Igrew up enjoying all there is
to love about our beautifulocean and waterways.
I'm the first person in myfamily born in Australia.
I fell in love with, you know,just growing up by the beach,
(02:17):
that was just the lifestyle thatI ended up almost taking for
granted.
And as my kids grew up and Irealized that, you know, if I
don't do something to changethis, my children and my
grandchildren in particular arenever going to have the
opportunity to enjoy thelifestyle that I've enjoyed
already.
Today there's so much climateanxiety with children and so
much going on.
So I thought what can I do?
(02:39):
And I was coming across allthese incredible ideas and
solutions.
I thought what better way tomake people more aware and bring
attention to what we can dothan creating a festival where
the community can connect withideas, solutions and innovation,
because there's so many greatideas out there, but there is no
(03:01):
vehicle or platform to connecteveryone, and that was basically
the basis and the premise ofthe festival.
Leon Goltsman (03:07):
So, anita, how did you design the festival to
go beyond entertainment andcreate real worldwide impact for
ocean conservation?
Anita Kolni (03:14):
When we had our first festival in Bondi, people
weren't sure if we wereenvironmental event or if we
were a sporting event.
So we really had to go away andput a lot of thought into how
people were going to perceivethe festival.
So we came up with our threepillars, which was ideas, art,
music and actions for the ocean,so people would understand more
(03:37):
what they were going to comeand find.
And we started working with allthe universities and the Sydney
Institute of Marine Science andthe Maritime Museum and the
Prince Albert Foundation and allthese other amazing
institutions and organisationsgot behind us and we thought
we've got to find a way toconnect this with the public.
So the festival was a fun wayto do that, and when people go
(03:59):
out and they have fun you knowpeople don't want to go out and
be educated in their time offbut if people go out and have
fun and they feel inspired, thenthey're much more likely to
create change.
Leon Goltsman (04:10):
So our goal was really to inspire and empower
people, because then you'regoing to create a movement that
starts to create change andwhilst you've gone and inspired
people, you designed a festivalthat just it doesn't just
provide a place or a locationfor people to attend, but you've
gone beyond entertainment.
You know, some of the things isyou've been uniting politicians
(04:31):
, celebrities, activists.
What's the key to getting sucha diverse and influential people
to collaborate on oceanconservation?
Anita Kolni (04:39):
Well, I think the key is that the festival has
become recognised as a trustedsource of knowledge and a
community and grassrootsmovement, and that makes people
from all walks of life want toparticipate and want to come and
share what they have to share.
So we have been very focused onchecking our resources and
(05:02):
making sure that anybody thatwe're working with is truly
aligned with our values, so thatwe can, in an era of
misinformation, we want toremain a trusted source of
knowledge, which is what we'vegrown into, and so that's a
really important thing wherewe're uniting business leaders
(05:22):
and politicians and other peopleto come and feel inspired and
find out about how some of theways other businesses are doing
it, because a lot of people feel, or a lot of businesses
actually feel, that it's ahindrance to put sustainability
and blue and green into theirfocus.
But when you hear from otherbusinesses that are doing it and
realising that it's actuallybenefiting and increasing their
(05:45):
businesses, then it can inspire,and from other businesses that
are doing it and realizing thatit's actually benefiting and
increasing their businesses,then it can inspire and
encourage other businesses to dothe same.
Leon Goltsman (05:51):
So you've had high profile figures like the
Bondi Rescue Lifeguards andother influential names.
So how has the celebrityinvolvement helped spread your
message and what role do youthink they play in shifting
public attitudes towardsconservation?
Anita Kolni (06:04):
We've been very fortunate to get some really
incredible people behind thefestival.
Even in our first year we hadGeorge Miller come and open our
festival for us, which was agreat win, and he's a true
environmentalist and loves theocean and having people like the
Prince Albert Foundation thatgot involved earlier on.
(06:26):
And Sylvia Earle, who, forpeople who don't know her, she's
like the David Attenboroughmarine science and has been
named first hero for the planet.
And then we've got our own,valerie Taylor here in Australia
, who's an absolute legend.
So getting some of those peoplebehind us in the early days has
helped build our credibility asa platform.
Um, it's been harder to getsome real like high profile
(06:50):
celebrities because you've gotto prove yourself before they
want to put your their name toit.
But we have been introduced toHugh Jackman, who unfortunately
couldn't participate this yearbecause he had a bit too much on
, and he's a Bondi local when heis in Australia and I really
think that's something that willhelp us grow the festival even
more.
And we have some incredibleambassadors, like Lisa Blair,
(07:13):
who's a solo world record holdersailor who's sailed around the
world and collects microplasticand does some incredible
research along the way.
We've actually just got MissEarth, miss Australia, who who's
joined us this year, and we'regoing out to a lot of new
ambassadors this year.
Part of that is actually thatwe've been a Bondi event for
(07:35):
four years, with fourcancellations because of COVID,
and we're not the only ones.
Everyone had to go through thatdifficult time, but it did make
it very difficult that we'donly just delivered our first
event before all that time.
So being a Bondi-centric eventwas a fantastic stage.
Bondi was like it has such astrong community feel, but it's
(07:55):
a real international stage andit has international appeal.
But from a sponsor and asupporter point of view, I think
it still feels too local, eventhough we're doing things that
are not just local.
It still feels too local to getthe kind of support behind us
that it takes to run a movementlike this.
(08:15):
We've been encouraged for a longtime by the Australian National
Maritime Museum and some of ourother partners to take the
festival much broader and wider,and we had been invited to take
it to Dubai last year for COP28.
We've been invited to take thefestival much broader and wider,
and we had been invited to takeit to Dubai last year for COP28
.
We've been invited to take it toFremantle and lots of other
places, but I felt thatdeveloping an opportunity and
(08:35):
expanding it across Sydney wouldbe the first, the best place to
start, because we have alreadybuilt such a great movement here
in Bondi.
We have already built such agreat movement here in Bondi.
We have people coming from allover Sydney and from interstate
to our Bondi event and we'reactually expanding it from a
four day, four or five day eventin Bondi into a month focused
(08:55):
on ocean around Sydney, whichenables us to get a lot more
support from Destination NewSouth Wales and really puts us
more on a global stage than everbefore.
So our goal is really to becomea global landmark event by 2030
, which is the end of the UnitedNations Ocean Decade, and this
(09:15):
brings in amazing opportunities,because now not only do we have
the opportunity to showcasesome of the best innovation
that's happening here inAustralia.
We'll be inviting people fromoverseas to come and showcase
some of their best innovationthat's happening here in
Australia.
We'll be inviting people fromoverseas to come and showcase
some of their incredibleinnovation and science and
solutions for the ocean and,from a partner and sponsor
opportunity, it gives them theopportunity now to brand across
(09:37):
Sydney for a whole month ofMarch, which is a huge
opportunity.
Leon Goltsman (09:41):
I can see why and how this is of state
significance.
How do you ensure that thefestival not only thrives as an
event, but also deliversmeasurable benefits for sponsors
and partners who support it?
Anita Kolni (09:53):
I think all organisations today feel a real
responsibility to not begreenwashing and to actually be
doing the right thing, and weare such a great vehicle for
that because we are doing thatright thing.
I mean our goal is to spreadhope and do so by educating,
increasing awareness andbringing you know, increasing
(10:16):
ocean literacy and growing thatto as many people as possible,
because you cannot createbehavior change if you can't
influence people and make themmore aware of something.
If you want to create change,you need to influence people and
make them more aware ofsomething.
If you want to create change,you need to make people aware of
something, because people can'tchange what they're not aware
of.
So our goal is to growawareness and educate people as
much as possible on what's goingon in the ocean and climate and
(10:40):
biodiversity space in general,because the more aware you are,
the more change you can make.
You can't change something thatyou're not aware of.
Leon Goltsman (10:47):
So creating a large-scale, impact-driven event
isn't without its obstacles.
What has been the biggestchallenges you've faced in
organising the festival and whatbreakthroughs have kept you
pushing forward?
Anita Kolni (10:58):
One of the biggest challenges is definitely funding
.
When you're a new start-up andin the environmental place, the
ocean has less funding than anyother environmental initiatives.
Funnily enough, and the oceanis actually at the heart of the
climate crisis.
We all need the ocean tosurvive.
Two out of every three breathswe take come from the ocean and
without the ocean, there's nosurvival of humanity and our
(11:19):
planet.
It's a real challenge whenyou're a new business.
You've got to prove yourself.
We're a not-for-profit, we can.
We raise donations and grantsand sponsorships, and I have
seen a shift in our funding frommore sponsorships to companies
donating through theirfoundations as well, because
(11:41):
that does tick a lot of theirenvironmental ESG boxes and
things like that.
So there's a big shift actuallyin the kind of organizations
that are following us.
Our principal partner, imc, isa futures trading firm from the
Netherlands.
They have a lot of focus onsustainability and their staff's
main three interests areenvironment, education and
(12:02):
community and we tick all thoseboxes.
So it's their staff, that kindof direct, where they're going
to be putting their money.
It was a very important lessonfor me to recognise that we give
a lot of opportunities forcorporate organisations to reach
a lot of their targets and toinvolve their staff, to make
them feel more engaged withwhat's going on in the
(12:25):
environmental space and givethem that power that they also
can become change makers andadvocates.
Leon Goltsman (12:30):
So you mentioned when we just started this
conversation you've done thisfor your children and for the
next generation.
How does Ocean Lovers Festivalengage young people and what has
been the most rewardingresponse from the next
generation?
Anita Kolni (12:42):
Our education program is one of the like my
highlights of the festival,because when I see the look of
the children's faces when theycome to the festival, it just
makes me feel like I'm making adifference.
We have a growing school program.
It started off with a schoolexcursion that children came
(13:03):
down to the festival and we hadabout 200 children in the first
year that we did it and thatlaunched in our second year
actually, or third year, becausethe festival and we had about
200 children in the first yearthat we did it and that launched
in our second year actually, orthird year, because the second
year we got cancelled and we hadover 200 and something children
that were booked to come downand last minute we got an influx
of kids and we had almost 400children that came down.
I think it was 380 in the firstyear.
(13:24):
Now we're at or something whichis the capacity for the junior
schools, but the children comedown and they do amazing
engaging activities, fromdriving underwater drones with
the Maritime Museum to buildingseahorse hotels that they then
got the coordinates that theycould actually follow when they
(13:44):
were deployed off Port Stephensto see how these hotels were
actually repairing the homeenvironment for seahorses living
under the water.
Leon Goltsman (13:52):
Well, that's one way of getting kids off the
screen, isn't it?
Anita Kolni (13:55):
Absolutely, and then we had some incredible
speakers in and they learnedabout microplastic and the
impacts.
But then we've also launchedsome great initiatives for
schools to do year-round, andthis is something that we're
really growing.
So we're now in our second yearof Fish Tank.
Fish Tank is our totalwrite-off of Shark Tank, where
we encourage kids to share theirgreat ideas for the ocean, and
(14:17):
we've had some of the mostinspiring ideas, from artificial
upwelling to solar-poweredcargo ships to dissolvable
fishhooks and really, reallyclever ideas and we've got
$10,000 in funding from partnersas prize money for these
incredible ideas, and we'restarting to work with
universities and other people tosee if some of these ideas can
(14:39):
then be developed to a nextstage if they come up with great
ideas.
We also have anothercompetition called Literati,
which has been going for a fewmore years, where children make
artwork out of things that couldend up in the ocean and then
they share their messages forthe ocean.
So they're actually exploringand understanding in real, in
real terms, the impact of litteron the ocean, which they don't
(15:01):
just do if someone says oh, canyou pick up that piece of
rubbish and put it in the binbecause it's not good for the
fish and they're learning tounderstand that.
And this year I'm reallyexcited we're launching a new
program called Ocean SmartSchools, which is actually going
to bring be an incursionprogram delivering straight to
the schools workshops straightto schools.
So we're partnering withphysics education, who have been
(15:23):
delivering science to schoolsfor over 20 years, to bring
these workshops straight intoschools across New South Wales
and Victoria and we're lookingat taking that around the
country.
Another initiative that we'redoing with the schools which I'm
really excited about is our SeaScience Student Expo.
So that's aimed at studentsfrom Year 9 to 12 to showcase
(15:45):
some of the careers and careeropportunities related to ocean,
which are much broader than alot of students would think.
So they might think that it'slimited to being a marine
scientist, but we've hadaquarists and so many different
people that are in differentcareers come and present to the
children or students, should Isay, because there are so many
opportunities, from accountingto technology to business.
(16:10):
There are many, many differentways students can get involved.
We had 700 students booked lastyear.
We lost a few because itclashed with NAPLAN,
unfortunately, and we've movedthat this year to the Maritime
Museum, who are partnering tohelp us deliver that event and
it's going to be an amazing dayon the 14th of March and that is
(16:31):
also to make it a lot moreaccessible to schools across
Sydney.
Leon Goltsman (16:35):
I think a lot of the teachers want to partake and
learn from that as well.
Anita Kolni (16:38):
Absolutely.
That's the whole point.
We want to communicate with theteachers, with the students,
and we hope they all come backwith their families on the
weekends of the festival toengage and learn more and get
their families more involved.
We've got some amazing like aspart of our expansion this year.
We're not just doing our fouror five days in Bondi, we're
also doing a whole weekend ofactivities in Darling Harbour
(17:00):
where we'll have markets andtrashing shows, a sustainable
boating showcase.
There's a dive show happeningin, a recreational dive show
happening at the icc.
We've got imax that are going tobe screening ocean
documentaries throughout thewhole month of march from
thursdays to sundays.
The fish markets are doingsustainable cooking classes with
(17:21):
celebrity and indigenous chefsand behind the scenes
sustainable tours.
We're doing some indigenousharbor tours with tribal warrior
and we're partnering with thedepartment of primary industries
to showcase project restore,which is a big government
initiative to restore sydneyharbor and the landscape of
sydney harbor and also protectthe fairy penguins and and the
(17:42):
seals, so that actually thatinitiative.
We're doing some ferry trips inSydney Harbour where people can
book online to join a ferrytrip on the 5th or the 12th of
March and they can take a ferryacross and learn about some of
the restoration projectshappening in Sydney Harbour,
from crayweed to living seawalltiles.
Do a behind-the-scenes tour atthe Sydney Institute of Marine
(18:03):
Science in Chowder Bay and thenhead over to Taronga Zoo and
meet with the seal experts andfairy penguins.
Leon Goltsman (18:10):
That's getting a completely different perspective
of what Sydney has to offer.
There's a lot of heart thatgoes behind Ocean Lovers
Festival, but there's alsoserious science backing the
movement.
How do you integrate scientificresearch into the festival and
what discoveries or solutionshave been shared that give you
hope for the ocean's futurefestival and what discoveries or
solutions have been shared thatgive you hope for the ocean's
(18:30):
future.
Anita Kolni (18:30):
So, as a festival, we aim not to replicate what
anyone is doing, but to be aplatform for all the incredible
scientists and innovation andtechnology that's happening in
the ocean space.
So we are fortunate enough tomeet with some incredible
innovators.
We've met early on in our daysat the festival with people like
(18:50):
Tim Silverwood, who was one ofthe co-founders of Take Three
for the Sea and now is doingOcean Impact Organisation, which
is Australia's first oceanaccelerator program for
start-ups.
And we have discovered someincredible ideas like Seabin
that started off by two localAustralian surfers clean rubbish
out of the out of harbors andnow it's become a really they've
(19:13):
actually created it's like adata collection um that I can't
even go into all the details.
It's just such a clever idea.
You'll have to look more intoit and you can meet them at the
festival we might have to putthat in the show notes as well
absolutely.
Uh, you can put a link to seebin uh.
Then there's also uh halbot,which is a new technology that's
been created out of some uhyoung technology and um
(19:39):
scientists out of sydney unithat have created these amazing
underwater drones to clean cleanthe bottom of boats, because
the bottom of boats create a lotof pollution in the harbour and
it also creates the boats dragmore, so actually they have to
use more fuel and things likethat.
So they've showcased at some ofour festivals and to our
(20:00):
students and we bring them intoevery opportunity.
All the people that we meetthrough the festival we bring
into other opportunities.
So whenever we see anopportunity to connect people,
we do, and one of the biggestthings that we found with the
festival is that it's a realconnector.
We've connected some incredibleorganizations uh through our
day.
At our first festival we had thegamay rangers, which is our
(20:23):
first new south wales sea rRangers Indigenous Sea Rangers
that came to our festival intheir first year and they met
with the beautiful team atSydney Institute of Marine
Science and the University ofNew South Wales and now they're
collaborating on projects acrossSydney Harbour doing
restoration with seaweed and thecrayweed and the living seawall
(20:46):
tiles and training their youngrangers at the University of New
South Wales, and our beautifulambassador, vanessa Perotta, who
developed the Snotbottechnology, where they actually
go and collect snot from whalesand dolphins to monitor their
health, which was actuallypioneered off Bondi Beach.
She's actually gotten somescholarships for the new female
(21:08):
ranger team that's coming outnext week.
We've had Sea Shepherd that'scollaborated with CSIRO and
University of New South Wales.
So all these incrediblecollaborations are accelerating
the impact at which we can helpbe a vehicle to accelerate
change for the ocean, positiveimpact for the ocean.
Leon Goltsman (21:28):
And all this positive change just makes us
realise that the ocean doesn'tjust belong to one place, it's a
global entity.
So naturally, the questionarises do you see the Ocean
Lovers Festival model expandinginternationally, and what would
it take to make that vision areality?
Anita Kolni (21:44):
I do see the festival going a lot of places.
Vision a reality.
I do see the festival going alot of places.
My goal at this stage is toreally make sure we establish a
very strong festival here inSydney and we actually have the
Sunshine Coast Council flyingover for the festival this March
because they're interested inbringing it over to the Sunshine
Coast and other places inQueensland.
(22:05):
We have been over to Fremantleand WA is very interested in
hosting a festival as well.
We have been invited to take itoverseas as well, but my goal
is really to establish thismodel here in Sydney so that we
can package it up in a way thatwe can deliver it to as many
places as possible and yes, thatdoes include overseas.
Leon Goltsman (22:27):
So, with all your goals of taking it overseas and
deliver it to as many places aspossible and yes, that does
include overseas.
So, with all your goals oftaking it overseas, it's clear
that the festival is more thanjust one event.
It's about the future.
Anita, what legacy do you hopeOcean Lovers leaves behind, not
just for your children, but forthe world?
Anita Kolni (22:43):
I think we live in a time where people have
forgotten how important it isfor us to be, that we need to
live in symbiosis with nature.
We cannot survive without ourocean, we cannot survive without
nature, and every other specieson this planet seems to
remember that and it seems to bean instinct for them.
But I think we've lost thatinstinct and I think we need to
(23:06):
re-find and re-fall in love withour connection to our planet
and our connection to ourenvironment, because if we
really want to create change, weneed to be spreading awareness,
making lifestyle changes tocollectively have a big impact,
and that means that we all needto make our personal changes.
But that's not going to happenunless people really feel a need
(23:28):
, and that is refinding thatconnection with the environment,
to start with.
Leon Goltsman (23:32):
You are creating that need and you are creating
that awareness.
Congratulations and well done.
You know you've come a long wayand you still, and this is just
the beginning.
Now, people often leave eventsfeeling inspired, but
inspiration alone doesn't savethe ocean, does it?
Anita Kolni (23:47):
No, we all need to take action.
Inspiration alone will notsolve the problem.
Everybody has to take action.
From changing your habits athome.
Using less plastic, compostingum, voting with your dollar when
you go to the shops, changingyour super fund and changing
(24:08):
your bank are probably thebiggest things that you could do
, because it takes 10 minutes onthe phone to make those changes
and then you are literallyevery day, without even trying,
making positive changes for theenvironment.
Leon Goltsman (24:20):
So what's one simple but powerful action that
you wish everyone would takeafter attending the festival?
Anita Kolni (24:26):
When people come to the festival, we want them to
feel inspired and empowered towalk away and make change, and
we actually did a survey lastyear and over 75% of people that
come to the festival walkedaway saying that they wanted to
make changes in their life.
So that, for me, is a hugesuccess.
Leon Goltsman (24:45):
How many people does the Ocean Lovers impact?
Anita Kolni (24:48):
Our events impact so many people in so many
different ways.
Just in Bondi alone last year,we had 40,000 people come down
over the festival weekend periodand we're expecting over
100,000 this year with theexpanded Sydney Festival.
Our media combined media reachlast year was 34 million through
(25:09):
all our different avenues andwe had we've had over 5 000
students now engage in ourschool programs over the last
couple of years and we've had adirect impact on 12 of the 17
sustainable development goalsfrom the united nations
sustainable development goalsand we and we're very excited.
Actually we did a survey lastyear and we had 86% of people
(25:32):
that attended the festival thatsaid the experience encouraged
them to make changes in theirlife.
70% felt more optimistic fromattending the event, which I
think is a really importantstatistic, and 64% said that
they left the event feelingbetter informed about how they
can actually help protect theocean.
And a really exciting one was80% said they're coming back
(25:54):
again this year.
Leon Goltsman (25:55):
So you are making the impact that you had set out
to do, absolutely so, lookingback, what has been the most
emotional or meaningful momentfor you in this whole journey?
Anita Kolni (26:05):
Watching the festival grow.
It's like watching a child grow.
It's been quite amazing and thechallenges that we've had to
make it grow through you know avery tumultuous time on our
planet generally has been veryrewarding, I have to say, and
from my personal perspective.
I've gone from being astay-at-home mum to feeling like
(26:26):
I can change the world, andthat's and and that's what I'm
doing, and I'm watching thisfestival grow like a child into
something that's going to takeon a life of its own and
hopefully inspire and empowerpeople for generations to come.
Leon Goltsman (26:40):
Anita, you certainly are doing that, and
I'm sure that many listeners outthere would like to get
involved one way or another,whether it's a corporate or
anyone in our community.
So the question is, if peopledid want to get involved or find
out more information, whatwould they need to do?
Anita Kolni (26:56):
I'd start by saying visit oceanloversfestivalcom.
Go and check out our incredibleprogram for 2025, because there
is seriously something foreveryone.
Make sure to follow our socials, because that will keep you up
to date with all the latest newsand if you're interested in
backing us, please get incontact with me.
My details are on the website.
(27:17):
You can send through an inquiryand I will get back to you
personally.
We have raised more funds thanever before, going out to expand
the festival from five days inBondi to a whole month across
Sydney, but we still do need asmuch support as we can get to
deliver the best program and thebest festival yet.
Leon Goltsman (27:35):
You did mention March.
What day specifically, orparticularly in March?
Anita Kolni (27:40):
We have events happening throughout the month
and across six precincts inSydney.
So, like I said, check ourcalendar and you will find
something to do with your familyor with people that you know,
with your loved ones, butthere's two focal weekends.
One will be the weekend inDarling Harbour on the 15th and
16th of March and the other oneis our big Bondi Festival, which
(28:03):
is going to be from the 22ndand 23rd of March.
In the whole of Bondi andsurrounds, we have an incredible
talks program which is actuallypart of our year round
engagement with people as well.
Now it's called the OceanLovers Talks.
We have ABC Radio Nationalcoming to host three of them
this year and they came lastyear as well.
(28:23):
Three of them this year andthey came last year as well.
But we have such an incrediblelineup of experts talking about
everything from alternatives toshark nets to sustainable
seafood, to I can't even tellyou how many amazing topics.
So make sure you get online andcheck out that incredible
program and if you don't get achance to come down to the
festival, that's actually allgoing to be available through
(28:45):
our podcast series, ocean Ideas,which you can find through our
website or on Spotify andYouTube.
We're also launching the SydneyCoast Hope Spot Marine BioBlitz
this year, which will giveeveryone in the community an
opportunity to become a citizenscientist any time during the
month of March.
All you've got to do is checkout the Marine BioBlitz on our
(29:06):
website, download theiNaturalist app and head down to
the waterways and snap away andget some photos of any
creatures you see in the rockpools under the water, whether
you're snorkelling or doing abeach walk.
Anyone can participate and allthose findings will be analysed
by scientists to actually createa bit of a baseline of what
(29:28):
species and how healthy is ourharbour?
What's missing?
Sometimes we have new speciescoming down because of the
warmer waters that end up herefrom Queensland that aren't
normally meant to be here.
Some of those are good, some ofthose are bad, but you can all
participate in this event, whichis going to be our first year.
It's the inaugural bio blitz,but we are going to be doing
(29:49):
that on an annual basis.
So if anyone wants toparticipate in the marine bio
blitz, it's actually on anywherein the hawksbury shelf marine
bio region.
If you're living anywherebetween newcastle and woolongong
and within sydney harbour, we'dlove to encourage you.
Best place to find the link isto go to
theoceanloversfestivalcom andlook up the Marine BioBlitz and
(30:11):
you can find all the details onhow to participate.
Leon Goltsman (30:14):
So for all the Lake Macquarie and listeners and
Central Coast and Sutherlandthat can partake as well.
Anita Kolni (30:22):
Everybody can partake, as long as you're near
the water, or even if you're notliving near the water, head
down to the water and make sureto download the app and you will
be helping us create a baselineof what beautiful creatures or
not so beautiful creatures livein our beautiful Sydney Harbour
and surrounds.
Leon Goltsman (30:40):
Anita, thank you so much always a pleasure, and
thank you for being on thisprogram.
Thank you so much for Always apleasure and thank you for being
on this program.
Thank you so much for speakingwith us and keep up the great
work.
Thank you so much for having me, leon.
And that's a wrap on anotherincredible episode of Engaging
Conversations.
What a journey this has been.
Anita Kolni has given a powerfulinsight into what it truly
(31:02):
means to take action to protectour environment, drive change
and inspire others to do thesame.
And, one of the biggesttakeaways change happens when
people come together, and that'sexactly what the Ocean Lovers
Festival is all about.
Bigger than a movement, it's away for people to reconnect with
the ocean, the environment andeach other, and it's working,
(31:24):
with over 80% of attendees leftfeeling inspired to make
meaningful changes in theirlives.
This is a huge success forAnita and her team, for the
sponsors, the partners, thecouncils getting involved and
for everyone who believes in ahealthier planet.
Most importantly, it's a hugewin for future generations who
will inherit this world.
(31:45):
Now, that's something worthcelebrating!
So oceanloversfestival.
(32:05):
!What started in Bondi is now
spreading across Sydney, withQueensland and Western Australia
looking to bring it to theircommunities too, and last year
alone, the festival reached 34million people across media the
impact undeniable.
So if this conversation hassparked something in you, now's
the time to get involved.
The festival runs all monthacross Sydney, so check out
oceanloversfestivalcom to seewhat's on and how you can be a
part of it.
Bring your friends, your family, your colleagues.
There's something in it foreveryone and if you're like most
people who've been, you'll walkaway knowing it was absolutely
(32:29):
worth it.
A huge thank you to ouraudience, guests, sponsors and
the amazing team that makes thispodcast happen.
I'm Leon Goltsman.
Until next time, stay safe,stay inspired and let's keep
making a difference together.
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