Proposed by: Garden Club of New Haven, Zone II

Bren Smith is a regenerative ocean farming pioneer. He became an ocean farmer in the 1990s after becoming disillusioned with traditional commercial fishing practices that were devastating the environment. He envisioned a new blue-green economy that produces healthy food and protects the environment.

Today he owns Thimble Island Ocean Farm, the world’s first multi-species 3D ocean farm, and directs GreenWave, a non-profit that trains and supports ocean farmers.

Bren's innovative farming system allows fast-growing environmenally friendly kelp to be grown vertically. The kelp supports the other nutrient-dense “crops” of mussels, oysters, and shrimp. Additionally, kelp can be used as food, biofuel, fertilizer, and animal feed.

This game-changing system has won numerous awards and accolades, and he has also been recognized by the White House, the UN, and the World Economic Forum.

His book Eat Like a Fish – My Adventures Farming the Ocean to Fight Climate Change, is a guide to saving our oceans and feeding people while providing good jobs for working-class Americans.

Bren Smith is showing the world how to build a climate-resilient food system that supports “making a living on a living planet.”