California Skincare Brand Goes Ocean Positive

Malibu-based skincare brand Osea is working with SeaTrees, a local non-profit specializing in conservation and restoration of marine environments, to look after three marine ecosystems, one on its doorstep and two across the world. “We’re going from climate neutral to ocean positive, which we see as a leveling up,” says Melissa Palmer, co-founder and CEO of Osea.

Since the company started in 1996, it’s been a veteran in the sustainability space. “But to be honest, we struggled with that term, because we’re manufacturing a product, and that has a footprint, even if we try to source ethically, reduce our use of materials, and all that. So we’re pretty excited that there are ways now that we can not only offset our use, but have a positive impact,” she adds.

Given Osea uses seaweed in its products, albeit a different variety of seaweed than in the kelp forests they’re looking to restore, there’s always been an affinity to the ocean and its health, Palmer explains.

By working with SeaTrees, a relatively new nonprofit founded in 2020, they’re becoming the first-ever beauty brand to define themselves as “Ocean Positive.” For every ton of carbon the company offsets, it’s investing in coastal restoration projects that extract carbon from the atmosphere.

“A kelp forest can trap as much carbon, if not more than a woodland forest,” she notes.

SeaTrees explains that over 90% of the kelp forests in California have been decimated by a proliferation of purple urchins, as their predators have disappeared from human impact and climate change. Yet, giant kelp forests provide habitat and food for over 700 marine species. So they’re crucial for that ecosystem. (Note that sea kelp is a more specific type of seaweed; in fact it’s the largest subgroup of seaweed.)

In addition to contributing to the kelp forest off the coast of Palos Verdes, Osea has committed to helping with projects in Indonesia and Cambodia as well.

Indonesia has lost a majority of its mangroves forests to degradation from agriculture, aquaculture, pollution, and in the Biak Island region, from a tsunami, explains Sea Trees co-founder Kevin Whilden. “Healthy mangroves support a wide range of ecosystem services including benefits to local communities, critical habitats, protection from sea level rise and storm surges, and filtration for neighboring coral reefs.”

On the other hand, the ridge-to-reef watershed in Cambodia has faced increasing threats from illegal logging, he adds. The protection of this critical ecosystem helps sustain more than 200 jobs, along with education and healthcare benefits for more than 16,000 people in the local community.

So what does this add up to in terms of carbon sequestered?

The SeaTrees token is made up of 1 VCS (Verified Carbon Standard) certified carbon credit from the Southern Cardamom REDD+ Project, four mangrove trees planted in the Biak Island region of Indonesia, and one square foot of kelp restored in Palos Verdes, California. The additional four mangrove trees and one square foot of kelp collectively have the potential to sequester 1 additional ton of CO2 over their lifetime, Whilden argues.

“We made the SeaTrees Token this way to be inherently regenerative, so that you automatically sequester more CO2 than you emit. Blue carbon ecosystems, which include mangrove forests, kelp forests, seagrass meadows, coral reefs, and coastal watersheds, can be much more effective at storing carbon per unit area than any other ecosystem on Earth when healthy,” Whilden says.

For Palmer, working with SeaTrees was a natural extension of the company’s ethos. “Yes, it’s a bit more expensive to take part in these initiatives, but it’s essential.”

The company, she explains, has looked at its own footprint meticulously, from simple details like managing their paper usage in the office and eliminating invoices in customer orders to investing in pricier endeavors, such as installing solar panels on their rooftop. And even as the company slowly grows, Palmer says she’s committed to doing it in a way that sits well with her.

“Greenwashing or using the word sustainable in a fashion that’s very deluded is something I’m seeing nowadays. So for us, this is another clear cut commitment we can make that’s traceable and impactful. It’s not just talk. Simultaneously, the commitment we make to Climate Neutral asks us to take on three projects each year. One year, we decided to completely take out invoices from our packages. That’s thousands of pieces of paper saved. And there’s an easy alternative — email. So really good sustainability is not always very sexy. It’s in the details and requires consistency,” she says.

Since Palmer spends her free time swimming in the waters off the coast of Malibu, preserving marine life is a personal passion as well. She’s hopeful though that other beauty brands will follow suit.

“Having seen so many brands now sign up with Climate Neutral, I’m hoping we will get more companies to invest in the oceans as well, and popularize the idea of being ‘ocean positive.’”