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Un Mar de Colores · Coronado, CA
Post-cleanup debriefs turn action into understanding — Coronado participants become advocates, not tourists.
Un Mar de Colores hosts ongoing Ocean Stewardship cleanup and conservation programming across the Coronado area and surrounding coast. Monthly events combine hands-on beach cleanup with environmental justice education, citizen science data collection, and policy literacy. Our Coronado programming partners with Coronado Public Library, Coronado Unified School District, Silver Strand State Beach (State Parks), and all events are free and family-friendly.
Monthly cleanups, quarterly workshops · Completely free
Coronado Central Beach's wide, flat sandbar and year-round lifeguard coverage make it a welcoming teaching location for our South Bay cohorts. We partner with Coronado Unified for middle school recruitment and with the Silver Strand State Beach for overflow locations. The proximity to North Island Naval Air Station also means we serve military-family youth through our Ocean Stewards program.
Quarterly ocean stewardship workshops in San Diego deepen advocacy and organizing skills for Coronado participants ready to move beyond monthly cleanups.
Community service hours for Coronado Unified School District students are documented at every Un Mar cleanup — Coronado teens get verified hours with environmental depth, not parking-lot volunteer slots.
Coronado sits inside San Diego County's coastal equity gap — 32% of residents identify as BIPOC, yet beach access has historically been gated by cost, transportation, and culture. Un Mar de Colores closes that gap with free programming and school-based recruitment.
With 20,192 residents, Coronado is one of the communities where a single free surf cohort can change dozens of lives per season. Our shuttles and school partnerships make distance (on the coast) a logistics problem we solve, not a barrier families carry alone.
Our primary Coronado and South Bay teaching location. Wide flat sandbar, gentle reform.
Coronado Central is consistently ranked among America's best beaches for family swimming and beginner surfing, with exceptionally clean sand that glitters from the high mica content.
In partnership with Coronado Unified School District and local community organizations, we recruit youth from 1+ Title I schools.
Ocean Stewardship at Un Mar de Colores connects coastal cleanup action with deeper environmental justice education. Monthly cleanups run across Oceanside, Imperial Beach, Cardiff, and partner sites, with each event combining hands-on debris removal with short teaching moments about the watershed-to-ocean pipeline, the plastic pollution crisis, and California coastal policy. Our Ocean Stewardship program is free and family-friendly, and we specifically prioritize recruitment from BIPOC communities whose relationships with the coast have historically been gated by cost or culture. Every participant contributes to our citizen science database tracking pollution patterns across San Diego County.
We do not charge families. Ever. That policy is structural — grants, donors, and shop revenue fund access so Coronado youth are never waitlisted for inability to pay.
“"He used to approach new activities with extreme anxiety — to the point where sometimes we couldn't even get out of the car. Now he goes much deeper into the water."”
We connect cleanup action to who bears pollution burden — especially cross-border Tijuana River watershed impacts that close beaches near Coronado. Stewardship isn't just litter; it's justice framing for BIPOC communities gated from coastal spaces.
Post-cleanup debrief and reflection sessions turn action into learning — plastic pollution science, watershed connections, and advocacy skills. Coronado participants leave as informed stewards, not just tired volunteers.
Absolutely — grandparents, parents, teens, and young children from Coronado are welcome. We design events for multi-generational participation with safety briefings before anyone touches debris.
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs in Coronado are 100% free — including 3/2mm wetsuits, soft-top surfboards, transportation from partner schools like Coronado Middle School, and certified bilingual instruction. Funding comes from the San Diego Foundation, community grants, and individual donors. No Coronado family has ever paid for our programming.
Primary water sessions run at Coronado Central Beach. Classroom components happen at Coronado Public Library and other partner sites. All water activities happen within lifeguard-flag zones.
We serve youth ages All ages. In Coronado specifically, our recruitment runs through Coronado Unified School District — with priority enrollment for students from Coronado Middle School. Cohorts are age-appropriate (One Ocean for 6–12, Ocean Stewards for 13–17).
No. We begin every cohort with ocean-safety fundamentals in chest-deep whitewater at Coronado Central Beach, supervised by instructors certified by the San Diego Fire-Rescue Lifeguard Division. Water comfort is built progressively. In Coronado, we also run pre-cohort pool-familiarization sessions at local community pools for students who request extra comfort-building.
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs are bilingual — and in Coronado, where 14% of households are Spanish-speaking, we intentionally pair at least one bilingual coach to every session. Cultural programming is delivered in both languages, and parent communications are always sent in Spanish and English.
Three ways: (1) everything is free, while most Coronado surf programs charge $50–$150 per lesson; (2) we are BIPOC-led and our coaches reflect the 32%-BIPOC Coronado community we serve; (3) our curriculum includes environmental justice, Kumeyaay coastal history, and cultural arts — not just surf skills. We exist because the ocean should belong to everyone in Coronado, not just those who can afford access.
Visit our sign-up page or contact us directly. Priority enrollment goes to students of Coronado Middle School and referrals from Coronado Public Library and Coronado Unified School District. Summer cohorts fill 3–4 weeks before start, so early contact is recommended.
Sign your Coronado youth up today — every program is 100% free, with wetsuits, boards, and transportation included.
All Un Mar de Colores programs are free for Coronado youth. Reach out to enroll, volunteer, or support the movement.
Un Mar de Colores is a BIPOC-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Oceanside, California. We provide free surf, ocean, and environmental programming for youth across San Diego and Tijuana — bridging cultures, coasts, and communities since 2018.
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