February - April 2026
What is the “Youth Voices on Wind” Project?
The Oregon Legislature asked Oregonians to consider the role of floating offshore wind energy off of Oregon’s coast. The Oregon coast is windy - all the time. That wind could generate renewable energy via floating turbines, anchored to the deep sea floor, and connected via cables to transmission lines onshore. Oregon’s energy planning also shows the state will need much more electricity in the future, and national studies suggest demand could rise by nearly 80% by 2050, raising urgent questions about how that energy should be produced. But there are tradeoffs - potential impacts to fishing, open vistas, the environment, etc. Using the year 2050 to spark our collective imagination, Offshore Wind Project: Youth Voices on the Future of Wind invites teams of high school students to envision Oregon’s future with or without floating offshore wind energy, and generate proposals to address important social, environmental, and economic issues for a future A) with wind turbines and B) without wind turbines.
During February and March 2026, teams will collaborate to craft their vision and proposals and then present those proposals to community leaders, elected officials, and other members of the community at the Offshore Wind Roadmap Roundtable in April 2026. The Project will provide each team an adult guide to help teams craft proposals. Convenings, coaching, and presentations will be done online via Zoom and email. Each team will receive a $500 stipend for participating, and judges will select two teams to present their proposals in person at the Grand Ronde Reservation on April 20, 2026.
What does the project entail?
The project will entail participation in four “virtual assemblies” where students will receive background on floating offshore wind and four imagined futures and work on proposals as teams. All teams will then present their proposals via 5-10 minute presentations during the final recorded Virtual Assembly (#4) on March 20, and submit those presentations for review by a panel of judges composed of elected officials, community leaders, and youth leaders. Judges will use the same rubrics to evaluate proposals as teams are given to guide our work, and will select up to two teams to present their proposals in person on April 20 to the Offshore Wind Roadmap Roundtable - a group of 30+ experts in energy, fishing, environment, and community.
Each team’s recommendation will become a public comment to the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development to shape the final Oregon Offshore Wind Roadmap.