The Surfrider Foundation

Nowadays, the Earth is suffering from a lot of environmental problems brought about by human activities. We get from nature not only what we need but also what we want which led to the degradation of very own environment. The natural disasters that claimed thousands of lives from around the world served as warning from Mother Nature telling us to change our ways and be more innovative in our daily activities. Disasters around the world proved to us that the earth has lost its original balance. Many of the forests in many countries are already denuded. Wastes products in both industries and households are found floating in the rivers and the seas. Chemicals from the farmlands caused damage to land and water resources. And the surging amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses released everyday into the atmosphere made the world hotter resulting to severe changes in the climate.

    One of the many institution and organization that advocates for the preservation and protection natural resources is the Surfrider Foundation. The foundation is a non-profit organization of grassroots stakeholders that are passionate and are committed in protecting and enjoying the worlds waters particularly the oceans, waves and beaches. The foundation started from a handful of visionary surfers who were concerned about the worsening situation of the ocean particularly in Malibu, California in 1984. With conservation, activism, research and education as guiding principles, the Surfrider Foundation was established on that same year. At present, the foundation has members from all over the United States numbering to 50,000 and 90 chapters have been established in many foreign countries. Countries such as Japan, Australia, Brazil, France and other European countries have affiliate organizations in the foundation.

    At the core of the Surfrider Foundation are environmental-friendly principles that serve as the guide and the rule to be adopted by the foundations activities. The principles explicitly enumerate the things that people must do even if they are not affiliated in the foundation. The Foundations principles are the reason why the foundation continues to thrive and exist.

    The first principle of the foundation is the recognition of the biodiversity and ecological integrity. These aspects need to be considered given the fact that coasts are imperative for the planets survival and restoration. Surfrider Foundation makes it a point that the natural integrity of the coastal environment will be preserved and protected at all cost.

Second, the foundation advocates for the right of access to beaches from around the world for people from all walks of life. Third, Surfrider Foundation gives protection to the effects on the near-shore ecosystems from wave-riding opportunities. This means that, while people enjoy the shores and the waters, they are still conscious about the effects that will impede on the near-shore ecosystem.

 Fourth, the foundation believes in the power of education to impart values on environmental conservation and protection. This is also a major advocacy of Surfrider as they believe that education is essential to the health and well-being of the earth and the sustainability of essential resources. The fourth principle of the foundation also emphasizes the need for environmental education to be more informative, proactive, factual, and synergistic and is conducted or imparted in interesting ways.

 Fifth, Surfrider Foundation employs communication that is accurate and nonpartisan. It is a kind of communication that is open and transparent to the general public. And just like the ocean waves, the foundation values individualism but at the same time camaraderie with profound appreciation to the unique capabilities and potentials of human beings and their connection with the ocean. In line with transparency and participation, the sixth principle of the foundation focused on the importance of membership participation from the grassroots level. They value highly each members contribution towards the improvement of the organization.

The other principles give importance to the value of non discrimination. The foundation accepts membership from different race and nationality. It does not discriminate members on the basis of religion, color, beliefs and practices and sexuality. These, they believe are crucial ingredients to fully realize the goal of the foundation which is the healthy enjoyment of all people of the coastal environment. The principles mentioned above are being followed by the representatives, affiliates and members of the organization.

    Since the inception of the Surfrider Foundation in 1984 in Malibu, California, the organization has been involved in many advocacies and actions in the conservation, preservation and maintenance of the ocean ecosystem. The foundation has been proven to be an effective tool to combat environmental degradation and is also regarded as an effective grassroots environmental movement. It has also been proven as a powerful advocate and caretaker if the marine environment which is the foundations reason of existence. Its membership is made up of people from all walks of life including among others, beach enthusiasts, surfers, divers, swimmers and people whose heart aches for the protection of the seas.

    The foundations in its 24 years of existence have already made a lot of accomplishments. Some of their accomplishments include winning the second Clean Water Act in the American history in the year 1991.  They have also successfully protected historical natural wetlands and sandy coasts of Bolsa Chica, California by successfully blocking a marina that could otherwise destroyed the said natural ecosystems. They also strove hard to combat large commercial beach resort companies from taking over miles of beach resorts that could have caused degradation in the quality of the waters as well as eliminate surfing activities.

    Another notable achievement of the foundation is the institutionalization of a uniform national water quality monitoring, reporting and beach posting program which was approved by the federal government as an effective measure and tool in safeguarding the oceans. Aside from this, they have also won in their campaign to stop discharges of pollutant, particularly the partially treated sewage, into the ocean, which also causes major damage to the seawaters. In terms of activities that needed lawsuits, they have won against the Chevron Oil Company in El Segundo, California that could have otherwise contributed to the pollutants in the sea.

    Above all, the foundation recognizes the role of education for a sustainable future. Given this, the Surfrider Foundation educated thousands of school children on the value and importance of maintaining, protecting and conserving the wonders and richness of the ocean and the coastal ecosystems. This effort would surely lead to a more comprehensive information drive as a means to achieving their mission of protecting and safeguarding the ocean for all people.

    Aside from the abovementioned achievement, the Surfrider Foundation also has many initiatives that geared towards the achievement of their goal and mission. The foundations official website enumerated several of its initiatives which include among others, Clean Water Initiative, Beach Access, Beach Preservation, and Special Places Initiatives. The following initiatives are explicitly explained in the Surfrider Foundation Website (2009) as follows The Clean Water initiative is primarily focused on protecting water quality in coastal watersheds and in the near-shore marine environment. Consequently, the Surfrider Foundation advocates for strong water quality regulations, adequate marine recreational water quality monitoring, reporting and posting, reduction of polluted discharges into the ocean and education regarding personal responsibility for the reduction water pollution. We also support smart land use planning to ensure that coastal environmental resources are protected and healthy watersheds are maintained (httpwww.surfrider.orgwhatwedo2.aspx).

Another initiative, which is the Beach Access emphasized on the right of all people to a free and open access to beaches and worlds waves as explained by the Surfrider Foundation (2009) below Beaches are one of the most popular public resources. Because individuals need access to beaches in order to enjoy them, beach access is probably the most important indicator in determining the number of people who can enjoy beaches. In nearly every state, some portion of the beach is public land, which means that all members of the public have the right to use that portion of the beach. Because much of the land between where people can park and where they can enjoy the beach is privately owned, their ability to enjoy beaches often depends on the quality and availability of access between roads and parking lots and the beach. It is simply not equitable for only some people to have access to the ocean and beaches, which are public resources (httpwww.surfrider.orgwhatwedo2.aspx).

Moreover, the initiative in Beach Preservation is focused on protecting the unique coastal environments and beaches that have ecological, economic and recreational value based on the premise that the ocean is free for everyone. The Surfrider Foundation (2009) goes on explaining that Beaches are a public resource and should be held in the public trust. As human activities and development in coastal areas increase, the need for preservation of beaches becomes ever more apparent. Hazards occur when naturally dynamic coastal processes encounter static human development, and when humans interfere with marine and littoral systems
With these initiatives, the Surfrider Foundation is apparently working actively and proactively in the promotion of effective coastal management to further prevent and even stop coastal hazards and degradation (httpwww.surfrider.orgwhatwedo2.aspx).

    It is noteworthy to say that this foundation truly cares for the natural environment particularly the ocean ecosystem through their coastal research, advocacy and scientific coastal management. Their efforts promote sustainability of the resources that are otherwise destroyed when commercial and big beach establishment took over the oceans of the world. The accessibility of their data and relevant information on ways of protecting the ocean has proved to be an effective strategy to mainstream their advocacy, thereby furthering the efforts in ocean environment preservation.

    The many causes of pollution and destruction of our ocean ecosystems is the very sole reason why the foundation exists and continues to exist. As long as people would not realize that they are the source as well as the solutions to the environmental problems, the foundation would seize to exist. The people behind the foundation are just ordinary individuals who care for the welfare of other people through the protection of marine resources. Many of peoples diseases are oftentimes caused by the pollutions in our oceans. There is a need for everyone to realize that it is now time to act and strengthen our commitment to save our environment from eventual destruction. In this regard, the Surfrider Foundation is highly commended for their efforts and struggles in protecting the nature that sustains our life.

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