Tidy Seas was born out of a moment of shock and frustration on the open water. Co-founders and Goleta natives, Ryan Wong and Randy Hughes, were out on the ocean, taking in the Santa Barbara Channel, when they witnessed something they couldn’t ignore—a boat in front of them dumped bags of trash straight into the ocean.​ Plastic bottles, wrappers, and waste floated away, sinking beneath the surface or drifting toward the shore. It was a heartbreaking sight, and it made one thing clear: the ocean, a place of life and beauty, was being treated like a dumping ground.​ That moment sparked a mission. They couldn’t stand by and do nothing. What started as personal beach cleanups turned into a movement—one that would bring together volunteers, businesses, and communities to fight back against marine pollution.​

 

Today, Tidy Seas is a community-driven nonprofit dedicated to protecting our coastlines, educating the public, and taking real action to clean up our waters. Every cleanup, every conversation, and every volunteer makes a difference, and together, we are creating a cleaner future.