Our Story

The OctoNation Story

Think back to your favorite teacher…the one who peaked your interest about a subject, made you even more curious to learn on your own, broke down complex topics in a super fun way, and genuinely cared about your success.

man and young kids observing an aquarium tank

This is how OctoNation founder Warren Carlyle imagined learning about the ocean from one of the most ancient creatures on the planet, the octopus.

Warren Carlyle with Sy Montgomery

In the New York Times Bestselling Book, The Soul of an Octopus, Sy Montgomery (pictured above) explains that the octopus was consistently misrepresented in movies. They were characterized as slimy & menacing creatures who would attack people & ships— but that wasn’t their story.

Octopus ruled the oceans before dinosaurs— In fact, there are over 300 species with various super powers that make them masters of their environments.

blanket octopus


Wanting to learn even more, Warren looked around for organizations to join, but many focused on alarming visuals of widespread pollution or frankly disempowering images of endangered animals.

We believe this isn’t a sustainable way to educate in today’s current environment.

Jacques Cousteau


French explorer Jacques Cousteau said it best. “We only protect what we love, we only love what we understand, and we only understand what we are taught.”

OctoNation was created to foster love for the ocean through the lens of the octopus.

Our nonprofit’s mission works to inspire wonder of the ocean by teaching the world about octopuses.

“We must create new & exciting opportunities to empower this generation of smart phone learners– the future of ocean literacy is pairing fascinating visuals & easy to share information. This creates a more sustainable relationship than marketing based on fear” – Warren Carlyle

Consider supporting OctoNation’s mission today!

 

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OctoNation in the classroom


Now with over 600,000 members and content that reaches millions weekly, we collaborate with underwater photographers, artists, marine biologists, aquarists, and organizations who are inspired by the octopus and our mission.