Oceana is the world’s largest international advocacy organization working to preserve the oceans. The group works to increase biodiversity by preventing overfishing, habitat destruction and plastic and oil pollution.
Miller didn’t apply for his position at Oceana directly after college. “I really don’t have a typical story when it comes to how I got here,” he said.
The economy was in a bad place when Miller graduated from Flagler in 2011, and as he looked for job opportunities, he kept St. Augustine in mind.
“After college I knew I wanted to stay in St. Augustine. I had no desire to leave, I loved the community,” he said.
Miller began working at the local St. Augustine business, Southern Horticulture. While working, he also advocated for environmental protection, organizing for the group Environmental Youth Council. “For years I [worked at Southern Horticulture] and then in my spare time I was essentially an activist and an organizer,” he said. Miller said that in 2015, President Obama proposed opening the Atlantic Ocean to new offshore oil drilling. Miller and the Environmental Youth Council got to work organizing campaigns to prevent this from happening.
In their efforts they went to the White House, lobbied on capitol hill, and they organized marches in St. Augustine. They ultimately helped stopped oil rigs from showing up on the Atlantic coastline. Miller found advocating for the environment important regardless of whether he got paid for his efforts. In those first years after graduating from Flagler, he made time to commit to advocacy while also working.
