The body of knowledge describing youth in agri-food systems is growing. However, there is a notable lack of evidence and studies explicitly related to the status of young people in fish-dependent communities or the roles young learners, educators, and schools play in realizing sustainable small-scale fisheries and aquaculture. In order to begin developing a curriculum for young learners framed by the SSF Guidelines, the curriculum development team began writing a literature review to identify critical issues and challenges facing youth in small-scale fisheries and rural education, informing the curriculum to potentially address these issues and support the well-being of youth in these communities. The literature review sought to identify best practices and successful models from the existing literature. Through the curriculum's future editions, Coast 2 Coast seeks to continue filling in the knowledge gap on young people in SSF and rural education's role in shaping sustainable futures as part of an ongoing investigation mobilized by the curriculum's dissemination and implementation.