Blue Solutions, a chapter of Oyster Boys Conservation, is a new club formed in Fall 2025 that supports water conservation efforts by creating sustainable vertical oyster gardens and deploying them in the ocean to aid in oyster population restoration.
Oyster Boys Conservation is a non-profit organization founded in 2022 by two brothers from Sarasota who wanted to make a difference in their local marine life. FGCU is the only university to partner with the organization to assist with conservation efforts.
To make a vertical oyster garden (VOG), club members take used and recycled oyster shells from restaurants, drill holes in them and string them along a rope. They then tie them off and send them out to be hung off docks and piers around Southwest Florida.
“People who have a house, right on the water, like those couples, will buy vertical oyster gardens, that’s when oyster boys steps in and they install the VOGs,” said club president Gabriela Re.
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Oyster larvae prefer to settle on clean shells, which provide a safe place to mature. Adult oysters are also known to filter around 50 gallons of water a day, which produces cleaner areas for other marine life to thrive.
“It helps clean polluted waters on the Gulf Coast, which is really important, particularly in Southwest Florida,” Re said.
In addition to hosting VOG-making events, the club also has guest speakers who speak on water conservation and educate members on ways that they can help, as well as craft nights and other bonding activities.
“Our club isn’t just focused on vertical oyster gardens or water conservation, it’s also about helping undergraduate students find their place,” said Re. “I didn’t know where to start as an underclassman, so I really wanted it to be a way that freshmen can talk to some upperclassmen and be able to get involved in research opportunities, not just like in the water school here, but also like in other places like the Colusa Waterkeeper.”
As the club grows, Re and the other officers are focusing on building the club, applying for funding from FGCU’s Student Government, collaborating with other organizations and finding internships for their members.
“One of our goals is to just really help those students get involved,” Re said. “Before [becoming club president], I wasn’t really involved in anything like research, or really anything here at FGCU, besides just doing classes, so it was a great opportunity.”
The club has had many events in its first semester, and looks forward to many more this Spring.
“The club has been great so far,” said Caiden Corso, a freshman who joined the club last semester. “I went to events where we heard from career experts in marine science and had opportunities to help our oceans. I thought it was a great time to learn and get involved in conservation, especially with the oyster gardens.”
“The officers l’ve gotten to know are also super passionate, well educated and excellent leaders,” said Corso. “They definitely have me looking forward to this semester’s events.”
Students who are interested in joining the club can find meeting times and tabling schedules on Eagle Link.