SURFRIDER HISTORY

COASTAL PROTECTION SINCE 1984

Click the link above to learn more about the history of the Surfrider!

 The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit grassroots organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of our world’s oceans, waves and beaches. Founded in 1984 by a handful of visionary surfers in Malibu, California, the Surfrider Foundation now maintains over 50,000 members and 90 chapters worldwide.

Mission Statement

The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s oceans, waves and beaches for all people, through conservation, activism, research and education.

Surfrider Foundation Principles

Represented by over 50,000 members and 60+ local chapters in the U.S., the Surfrider Foundation also has affiliations in Australia, Japan, France, and Brazil. The Surfrider Foundation has adopted the following principles to guide and govern the activities of the organization .

1. SURFRIDER recognizes the biodiversity and ecological integrity of the planet’s coasts are necessary and irreplaceable. SURFRIDER is committed to preserving natural living and non-living diversity and ecological integrity of the coastal environment.

2. SURFRIDER promotes the right of low-impact, free and open access to the world’s waves and beaches for all people. SURFRIDER acts to preserve this right of access.

3. SURFRIDER is dedicated to enhancing wave-riding opportunities in ways which will not adversely impact nearshore ecosystems.

4. SURFRIDER believes environmental education is essential to the future health and well- being of the planet. SURFRIDER seeks to develop and utilize educational materials that are informative, factual, proactive, synergistic and fun.

5. SURFRIDER strives to be accurate and nonpartisan in its communications with its members and the general public. In addition, SURFRIDER will express the unique values inherent in wave-riding — individualism, camaraderie, non materialism, and an appreciation for human kind’s historic relations with the Ocean.

6. SURFRIDER is a grassroots organization, effective through the participation of its members. SURFRIDER activities emphasize the value of an involved membership.

7. SURFRIDER encourages all commercial enterprises to adopt the Ceres Principles. Their determination to do so will favorably influence SURFRIDER’s willingness to provide support. SURFRIDER will not permit sponsors to divert the Foundation from its mission or projects undertaken.

8. SURFRIDER does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, sex, or national origin for any reason. SURFRIDER promotes the healthy enjoyment of the coastal environment for all people.

9. SURFRIDER and its representatives, affiliations and chapters agree to abide by these principles and all rules and regulations governing non-profit organizations.

Marin County Chapter History

Surfrider Marin was founded in 1998 by Scott Tye, and others:

From Scott Tye: “My first memory of Surfrider was while I was attending a National semi-annual Conference of United States Lifesaving Association(USLA)  in La Jolla cove in San Diego in 1979.I was representing the NorCal region of USLA. One of the educational presenter’s were two leaders from the Malibu/LA  chapter of Surfrider presenting a slideshow of water pollution and Surfrider ID.
I joined right after that meeting in 1980 and was assigned the San Francisco chapter(there was only SF chapter in NorCal) and continued as a member until 1998  when a group of members began to organize for a chapter for Marin. In earily 2000, we met in to organize and select officers-Bill Guthrie and I became Chair/Vice chair positions for the next five years. After  Bill retired and moved on, I became chairperson and Loren Moore selected as Sect/Tres  and we continued that arrangement for over 16 years(on-and-off).
Since the 80’s, our chapter remained a smaller membership/activities group until we staked-out several areas to engage.
The Marin County Chapter:
Started Blue water taskforce H2o testing with the County of Marin and High School  testing ,starting in 2001 and working with several school and County of Marin;
Initiated Beach Clean-ups and coastal pollution campaigns in 2000 and contacted school, youth groups, and various local companies to participate;
In 2012, after engaging with interested youth ,started the SURFWORKS  summer camp for disadvantaged youth in Marin;
After receiving positive press on our activities , our chapter began to  receive funding contributions that have given us financial freedom to explore other projects (various Surfing Art Shows; plastic pollution workshops; annual Surfer Art Tide calendar).
I am ‘most’ proud of our engagement in our Youth Outreach/Programs that have turned the Marin County Chapter SF into a young persons driven organization. We have had, as-many-as, five high schools (both private & public) active with all of our programs and leadership-including attendance at West Coast/California/ and National Surfrider conferences and attending the Washington DC to lobbying Congress in 2020.”