Happy World Ocean Day!
As surfers and sisters of the sea, we celebrate our beautiful oceans every day.
Everything is connected and what happens on land has ramifications for our oceans. With this top of mind, environmental responsibility has been our North Star since day one. With open hearts we're always learning and evolving, selecting materials that are gentler on the Earth, from land to sea.
World Ocean Day supports collaborative conservation and works with a network of youth and organizational leaders in over 150 countries to protect and restore our oceans. In addition to annual conservation actions, World Ocean Day provides free actionable resources to anyone who wants to get involved.
Get Involved and Spread the Word
We know it can feel overwhelming to find ways to make a difference as just one person. Joining local beach cleanups and doing our best not to use single-use plastic are all great - but maybe you want to do or learn more.
Here are three organizations we love doing great work to help preserve our beautiful blue planet. Follow the links to learn more about their causes, share them with your friends and family to help raise awareness, and get involved if you can! If you're not in a position to donate to any of these causes, remember that educating yourself and sharing with your own community can be just as impactful - the more people are aware of these issues and these causes, the more positive change we can make together!
1. Save the Waves Coalition
As surfers, this cause is close to our hearts. Launched in 2003, Save the Waves is the only organization solely dedicated to protecting surf ecosystems on an international scale. In collaboration with local communities and governments, Save the Waves Coalition creates “surf protected areas,” which protect ecosystems by removing threats of overfishing, deforestation, plastic pollution and unsustainable development.Save the Waves Coalition focuses on places around the world where surfing waves overlap with biodiversity hotspots that are critically important for marine conservation. Protecting surf ecosystems in turn protects marine habitats, maintains the integrity of the wave, and safeguards local livelihoods.
2. Mission Blue's Hope Spots
Founded by legendary oceanographer Dr. Syliva Earle, Mission Blue was created to generate awareness and a groundswell of support to turning Hope Spots into Marine Protected Areas. Marine Protected Areas are l like national parks on land where exploitative uses like fishing and deep sea mining are restricted.
Hope Spots are special places that are critical to the health of the ocean. Some Hope Spots are already formally protected but where more action is needed, while others still need defined protection. Under Dr. Earle’s leadership, the Mission Blue team has launched a global effort to shed light on these vital ecosystems and ignite support to safeguard them as marine protected areas.
You can lend your support and contribute to expanding the preservation of our oceans by donating to their cause, or by identifying a Hope Spot of your own!
3. Sungai Watch
A non-profit operating out of Indonesia, Sungai Watch is on a mission to clean rivers and dump sites to stop plastic from entering our oceans. In 2022, Sungai Watch had 180 barriers installed in rivers in Bali and Java (which is home to 90 of the worlds 1,000 most polluted rivers), which are cleaned daily. In order to create lasting impact and prevent plastic from entering our rivers in the first place, they have teams dedicated to cleaning riverbanks, mangroves, and coastlines. Throughout 2022, they organized a total of 526 cleanups.
They are scaling rapidly and are already exploring an international expansion through Asia and Latin America.
You can help them reach their goal of installing 1,000 barriers by donating if you are able to do so. If you are in or will be visiting Indonesia, you can check to see if there are any opportunities to volunteer at a cleanup.
For more information, checkout their 2022 Impact Report .
