If the earth is a body, water is its blood, and almost all of that water is salty. The ocean contains some 97% of the earth's water, and covers about 72% of its surface. Like our blood, the ocean circulates all over, carries nutrients, helps us breathe, and is essential to the well-being of the planet. Without the ocean, the planet would be uninhabitable. Life evolved in the ocean, plants in the ocean produce most of the planet's oxygen, and about 1/5 of all people on the earth depend on the ocean for protein. Furthermore, the the ocean moderates our climate to a temperature range tolerable for all terrestrial and marine organisms. Keeping the ocean healthy is a job shared by all citizens of the planet, and preparing those citizens to be informed planetary stewards is the job of environmental educators.

Marine scientists and educators all over the country have worked together to define the the attributes of an informed ocean steward - a person who is Ocean Literate. An ocean literate person understands the science of the ocean, can communicate clearly about the ocean and can make informed decisions that affect the ocean.

The mission of Ocean and You is to provide students with the tools they need to make informed decisions about the ocean.

The ocean literacy consensus further defines seven essential principles:

1. Earth has one big ocean with many features.
2. The ocean and life in the ocean shape the features of Earth.
3. The ocean is a major influence on weather and climate.
4. The ocean makes Earth habitable.
5. The ocean supports a great diversity of life and ecosystems.
6. The ocean and humans are inextricably linked.
7. The ocean is largely unexplored.