For The Love of The Ocean — Haley Kuhn-Gale Photography

for the love of the ocean

Elevating the voices of surfers in times of change.

View Full Op-Ed Here

As noted in a 2022 article by Surfer Today, shifts in wave patterns and rising sea levels are already beginning to alter Portugal’s famous surf breaks like Nazaré and Ericeira. Climate Change and a changing ocean is personal to surfers, heres why.

The Ocean IS

Peace

“The ocean is where I feel safe and at peace”

— Felix Puren

“The ocean has a way of quieting the noise inside my mind. Its endless horizons make my problems feel small, its rhythm syncs with my breath and suddenly everything slows down.”

— Chloe Rodrigues Margot

The Ocean IS

a teacher

and a friend

“A friend that humbles me towards natures power and greatness. A friend that provides me with waves and allows me to feel fulfilled, happy, and scared at the same time.”

— Bastien Gobet

“The ocean moves on its own terms, and you have to learn to listen, to read every subtle change of it.”

— Caterina Maroni

The Ocean IS

a home

“All these elements create a place, and in this place I find a kind of silence, which calls my soul home.”

— Louis Megow

The Ocean Is

fragile

“The ocean is fragile, he was there before us and will be after us. ”

— Felix Puren

The Ocean Is

a plac e to find community

“The ocean is a place to have a conversation.”

— Erwan Huyberechts

The Ocean IS

Surf

“In the end, surfing has become the way I want to live.”

— Caterina Maroni

The future of surfing in Portugal, and everywhere is uncertain if we don’t act. Sea level rise doesn’t care about how much a wave means to these communities. It doesn’t care about the years spent learning to read a break, about the way catching a perfect wave can feel like a spiritual experience. But we do. And because we care, we have a responsibility.

Protecting the ocean isn’t just about data or policy. It’s about storytelling, connection, and love. It’s about understanding that the waves surfers care so much about are shaped by forces far greater than ourselves and that our actions, however small they feel, matter.

The ocean Is everything. It’s peace, freedom, a friend, a teacher, and so much more. It’s taught us patience, resilience, humility, and joy. It’s where many of us found ourselves.

Now, it’s our turn to give back.

Yin Yang