Feel Good Friday - Surfrider Foundation

It's another Feel Good Friday where I share an organization I learned about while volunteering with my coworkers. This week it was picking up trash at Ocean Beach in San Francisco organized by the Surfrider Foundation.

The Surfrider Foundation was created by a group of surfers in Malibu, California in 1984 to protect their favorite surf spot. As the organization has grown, the mission has remained the same: "The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of oceans, waves and beaches through a powerful activist network." This video shows you what people are fighting for.

With a national network of 84 chapters, Surfrider volunteers are the first response to local threats in coastal communities across the US. Campaigns organized by Surfrider focus on issues related to beach access, clean water, coastal preservation, ocean protection, and plastic pollution. They've had over 400 victories since they started counting in 2006, including banning plastic bags in my home state of California!

The beach cleanup project I worked on helped with the Rise Above Plastics campaign. Did you know that "plastics comprise up to 90% of floating marine debris"? Me either! As with all their campaigns there is an intro to the topic, as well as information and tips on what you can do and links to partner organizations also working on the issue. In the 2 hours our group was at the beach we cleaned up 900 cigarette butts, 80 pounds of trash and 30 pounds of recycling! Use this interactive map to see the campaigns happening in your area.

Volunteering your time and donating your money are great ways to support and protect our oceans, beaches and waves. You can also take action from the comfort of wherever you are right now by contacting your elected officials, liking the Surfrider Foundation Facebook page, following them on Twitter @Surfrider or going shopping! Doesn't that feel good?