At the heart of this year’s theme — The Intelligence of Nature — was a central question: what if the natural world already holds the blueprint for how we live better together?

Coast Summit 2026 was a full-day immersive journey as part of the Coast Film & Music Festival in Laguna Beach, CA where we focused on the Intelligence of Nature in a dynamic mix of conversations, storytelling, film, music, and ideas.

Together, we explored what nature can teach us about resilience, creativity, collaboration, community, regeneration, and living in greater harmony with the planet.

Innovation rarely happens all at once. More often, it starts with a simple question: Can we do this better?

For Burton Snowboards, that question sparked a multi-year effort to rethink packaging across its business. According to a recent article in SNOWBOARDER Magazine, Burton has reduced single-use plastic in its retail consumer-facing packaging by 90% through a combination of material innovation, source reduction, and a willingness to challenge conventional packaging systems.

In October, the A New Earth Project team gathered in Laguna Beach for three inspiring days during the Coast Film & Music Festival, centered around the fourth annual Coast Summit. Through conversation, films, music, and storytelling, we explored this year’s theme, The Intelligence of Nature, and a simple yet profound question: what if the natural world already holds the blueprint for how we live better together?

For NYC Climate Week this year, A New Earth Project, Blue Marine Foundation, and Earthrise Studio convened Mother Nature: Women Leading the Future of Conservation and Storytelling. Hosted and moderated by National Geographic Explorer, documentary filmmaker, and Earthrise Studio co-founder Alice Aedy, the session brought together women leaders spanning landscapes from the Saskatchewan River Delta to coastal mangroves and the Amazon.