Have you ever heard of Girl Scout cookies saving the world? Two Florida Girl Scouts, Olivia Galvan, and Alejandra Jiménez, are taking a sweet approach to raising awareness about a serious issue: coral reef destruction.
Learning About the Importance of Coral Reefs
These eco-conscious Girl Scouts are youth ambassadors with the Coral Restoration Foundation (CRF), and through their work with the CRF, they learned how vital coral reefs are to our planet. From protecting our coastlines from storms to providing homes for a quarter of all ocean life, our reefs are in serious danger of disappearing.
"Our generation is basically the generation in between the destruction of coral or the liveliness of coral, so it's up to us to either destroy coral or help coral, and I choose to help coral," said Olivia Galvan.
Girl Scouts Alejandra Jimenez and Olivia Galvan prepare their prototype coral reef cookies with Chef Ignacia Valdes Novik. Girl Scouts
Cookies with a Cause
Olivia and Alejandra wanted to do something to help, so they literally got cooking - okay, baking! These go-getter Girl Scouts teamed up with professional chef Ignacia Valdes Novik, who introduced them to spirulina - a sustainable food colorant and nutrient-rich algae. They created a blue coral-shaped prototype using the superfood ingredient, and topped it with delicious sea-salt caramel.
Spreading the Word to Save Coral Reefs
Olivia and Alejandra presented their idea to the bigwigs at the Girl Scouts of Tropical Florida. CEO Chelsea Wilkerson was impressed. "This is a generation of girls that has no choice but to solve the climate crisis, and if they need to use something like the Girl Scout cookies or any kind of cookie to create awareness, excitement, and knowledge around the importance of the coral reef, then I say let's do it," she said.
The environmental docuseries "Wormhole TV" captured the project from the girls and is scheduled as "coming soon" on the show's website. The social media-based content airs on Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
The Future of Coral Reef Cookies?
While there's no word yet on a national coral reef cookie, the girls say they are hopeful. Alejandra said, "I hope they'll say, 'Oh, maybe one day we'll turn these cookies into a Girl Scout cookie.'"
