Protecting Coastlines and Waterways: Dr. Chad Nelsen on the Surfrider Foundation's Mission

Howard Fox [00:00:00]:

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to the Outdoor Adventure Series podcast, where we celebrate individuals and families, businesses, and organizations that seek out and promote the exploration, stewardship, conservation, access, and enjoyment of the outdoors. Dr. Chad Nelson is our guest on the outdoor adventure series today. Chad is the CEO of the Surfrider Foundation and leads the world's largest grassroots network dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world's oceans, waves, and beaches through approaches that integrate coastal recreation with conservation. Chad, it's a pleasure to have you on the Outdoor Adventure Series podcast.

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:00:43]:

Welcome. Hey, thanks for having me, Howard.

Howard Fox [00:00:47]:

Fantastic. And let's get right into it. What is the Surfrider Foundation?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:00:53]:

The Surfrider Foundation is a grassroots, coastal, and ocean conservation organization. So our goal is really to take the passion for people who love our coasts and our oceans, which are just everyone, and convert that passion to action and stewardship to protect our coasts and oceans. So we work in coastal communities all over the country and the world and have over 140 high school and college clubs all rallying around protecting our oceans from plastic pollution, keeping the water clean, keeping our beaches healthy, and we can scale up from the local to the state up to the federal level.

Howard Fox [00:01:32]:

Fantastic. And I have to say, the work is cut out for you guys. There's just so much pressure, and tension everywhere we look, and there's so much need to combat that pressure and tension.

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:01:48]:

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think for many years we felt the oceans were too big to impact. Unfortunately, as a result, we've used them as a dumping grounds for many things, and that's catching up with us. Now we see plastic pollution is ubiquitous in the ocean. Our sort of wastewater systems that are pouring effluent into the water are having negative impacts. We're seeing these big algal blooms, even climate change there's. Now marine heat waves. Just last week, there were record temperatures in the North Atlantic impacting Europe. So the heat that the ocean absorbed is now coming back out in marine heat waves. So plenty of work to be done, plenty of work.

Howard Fox [00:02:30]:

And I'm curious, how did your career with Surfrider Foundation take you? I mean, because you've been the CEO for a number of years, but you actually were a member of the organization before that. So how did this journey into an organization like Surfrider Foundation, how did that come about?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:02:51]:

Yeah, it's a great question. I've been here too. This summer will be my 25th-year Surfrider, so I'm a lifer. So I've been at this here for a long time. In 1995, I was a grad student intern, so I'm kind of a mail room to the CEO kind of character. But like so many things, it was half intention and half luck. I grew up on the beach. I was a surfer, lifeguard, fisherman, ocean kid. Didn't really know how lucky I was to be doing that because it's all I knew. And as I saw sort of impacts happen to Southern California from overdevelopment and other things, I gained an interest in the environment. And interestingly enough, I didn't put those two together. I think in my early years, sort of if you wanted to pursue a career around the ocean, you were either a fisherman or you were Jacques Cousteau, a marine biologist. And so I kind of actually started looking at other types of environmental activism. It was a mentor friend of my father's that sort of said, hey, you can have a whole career around ocean and coastal conservation. And the light bulb went off, and I was like, oh, well, that's exactly what I want to do with my ultimately, probably the biggest Pivot was going to grad school at Duke University. They have a coastal environmental management program, a master's, I call it, an MBA for the ocean. And that program really opened my eyes and launched my career.

Howard Fox [00:04:27]:

Okay, and as you launched this career, how did you discover the Surfrider Foundation and its mission and kind of latch onto it?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:04:40]:

Yeah, growing up in Southern California and being a surfer, I was kind of generally aware. The organization was founded in 1984. I was 14 at the time, and so I was kind of generally aware of the organization. And I thought it was interesting because historically surfers have had this negative reputation Spacoli, burnout, dropout, contributing to society. And as someone who was like a surfer and also a scholar, which was somewhat unusual, I was like, hey, this sounds interesting to me. And during those two years of grad school and I decided this is the career I wanted to make. I was broke like most grad students are. My dad ran at the time a marine science summer camp, so I was volunteering, working for him to make some money, and Surfrider was just down the road. So I called him up and said, hey, do you need a free intern? And they said, sure. So in some ways, I just was a little bit lucky and a little bit of me being inquisitive, I guess.

Howard Fox [00:05:41]:

Early to the, as you said, from the mail room to the front office.

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:05:45]:

Yep, that's right.

Howard Fox [00:05:47]:

You mentioned as you were describing the foundation, these chapters that are all over the coastal areas within the US. And also working with students. They are a lot of advocates because that's part of what you do when you're in school. You get involved in local initiatives, activities. How has it continued to evolve for the organization to recruit students? It would seem that there's a growing awareness around a generation younger than I am, perhaps even younger than you are. They're very much aware of what's going on around them. And to see organizations like that, is there a difficulty getting students involved, or are they like, knocking down the door?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:06:43]:

No, it's interesting because a lot of organizations that are, well, probably our age or older the Sierra Club, NRDC, the Nature Conservancy, their average age of sort of member supporters is increasing, and they're concerned about that. And ours is actually decreasing. We're getting younger because our strongest growth is with these young college kids. So they're knocking down the door. I think that's because we maintained sort of a youthful have surfing and ocean recreation, and we've intentionally kind of maintained a youthful brand and energy around and been welcoming to them. I think this current sort of gen z, I guess you call them, this sort of like teens to 20 somethings are maybe the most motivated to protect our plan of any prior generation, partly because they're going to deal with a lot of the consequences that we, our generations have created. So I feel like they're there. And if you can provide opportunities that are meaningful and fun and create community, which is kind of the secret sauce of our organizing, there's more of more kids and more interest than we can keep up with, which is really a.

Howard Fox [00:08:12]:

Good thing, a very good thing. If we could dive a little deeper. I'm curious about the overall mission and how has your mission of the Surfrider Foundation how has it evolved and how do you see it continuing to evolve given the current pressures that are around us today?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:08:34]:

I think two things have happened. I think historically we were a very reactive group, which is not uncommon for small environmental organizations. So we were trying to stop bad projects from happening. Oh, that's inappropriate coastal development. Oh, they want to build something here that's not right, or we want to stop this pollution from coming into the ocean. And we've evolved to get more proactive. So now we're trying to get ahead of problems instead of just the problems. So I think that's been that means setting policy and trying to be more forward-thinking about impacts as opposed to just responding. An example would be only doing beach cleanups to try to pick up the plastic that's found on the beach versus trying to proactively ban single-use items that are the source of that pollution. So we could do beach cleanup forever or we could eliminate the problem on the front end. The other is our scope. First, it was surfers protecting surf spots, and it was sort of myopic and maybe arguably selfish, although what's good for surfers, generally good for most people. And then it became, hey, we need to focus on communities and watersheds. Then we realized we really need to focus on the health of the ocean, and the health of the ocean now means the health of the planet. So I think our mission has expanded from what you can see right out your front yard to really trying to collectively solve some issues that are, again, global and plastic pollution and climate change. And some of these issues are global issues.

Howard Fox [00:10:08]:

It is really interesting to me as I was getting prepared for the episode today and I'm going through a lot of what is available on the website. There was a story you just published on astroturf and the effects of astroturf and why? Because it's plastic. And you live in Southern California, I live just up the road a little bit, and access the desert a little bit in Las Vegas. And there's a huge conservation effort here to not have to one of the alternatives to grass is turf, some type of turf. And I was thinking, oh my God, you have these developers who are going to not put in grass, thank you very much. But now they're going to put in turf, which I'm wondering if they've even thought about some of those systemic well, if we do this action today, did they even think about what the repercussion was going to be a year from now, ten years from now, on and on? And I wonder about that. And that was a mind-blowing enlightening story for me.

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:11:28]:

Yeah, we do have, unfortunately, a history of sometimes solving one problem while creating another. And I think we got to try to really think really systematically about our solutions, right? And so if they're trying to find a way to save water and that's why they want to use turf, I think the question would be does it need to be grass? Kids want to play baseball, we need to find a solution for that. But if it's just you can look out your front yard and see grass, maybe there's a better alternative, some native plants or something beautiful that's desert appropriate. So I think it's really trying to think about how we can solve the problem and not just kind of fall back on sort of historical norms. But you're right, we're learning almost every day that these plastics that we use are shedding these microfibers and those microfibers are everywhere. They're in the air, we debrief, they're finding it in our blood, they're finding it in fetuses of babies. It's scary stuff. So we're doing a giant human experiment and environmental experiment and plastic have uses and values in our society for sure, but we should probably design things that are going to last and try to find ways to stop the shedding of these microfibers just for our own health. It kind of reminds me of a little bit of the asbestos issue of the past where well-intentioned didn't understand the side effects and we spent a lot of time and energy trying to get rid of that stuff and I feel like the same thing is kind of here with plastics.

Howard Fox [00:13:16]:

I think you're spot on. I'm curious, with an organization like Surfrider Foundation, what are your hooks into, like the universities, the think tanks that are also very much attuned to conservation, stewardship, and access for that matter, how will you interact? And also the government agencies who are tasked with protecting many of our natural resources. How is the organization tied into those entities?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:13:51]:

It's a great question. While we're focused on serving and recreation, we want to make sure volunteerism is meaningful and fun. We're also serious and science-based. We have a lot of experts on our staff that are well trained and often connected to these organizations and are expert speakers on panels. And so we have really good sort of connections to universities, to law schools, to our federal agencies like the National Ocean and Atmosphere Administration and Grace Patina and the National Marine Sanctuary Program, which is how we met, is a good example of that. So these big national marine sanctuaries that are all over the country, Surfrider has been sort of commenting and engaging and volunteering in those over decades. As a result, we've developed a relationship with the staff at those agencies. We go to DC every year and go to the Hill and meet with our legislators and the agencies, the ocean-related agencies. And so I feel like we've built credibility over the years. So now we're interacting with these groups. And it's important because we do want to be science-based and we want to provide solutions that are we. I think those have just been built over time.

Howard Fox [00:15:15]:

I'm curious here in the US. Perhaps some of it is a little bit more global, but what are the pressing issues that your organization is actively involved in within the US. Maybe? Does the foundation have any presence outside of the continental US. And the islands and the territories?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:15:42]:

Yeah, great questions. I think that the issues transcend the US sort of boundaries. But first, the biggest issue is climate change. I think this is the issue. We're seeing these heat waves. I imagine it's cooking where you are today.

Howard Fox [00:16:03]:

Very much so, yes.

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:16:05]:

And we're seeing the impacts of climate change in so many ways and those are also being felt in the ocean. The ocean is heating up and becoming more aesthetic and we're seeing habitats change. There are threats to coral reefs. So climate change is a big issue. Sea levels are rising, which is going to impact coastal communities. And there are solutions there too. The oceans have an incredible capacity and ocean habitats to sequester carbon. They call it blue carbon. And we want to make sure that coastal communities adapt to the sea level rise that's coming. So sea level rise is a big issue. Plastic pollution is another big issue. The ocean is teeming with plastic. It's having all kinds of effects. So we're trying to single use plastics, these commonly used items that there's just better alternatives for. And third for us is really protecting our coastal water quality. We heard a lot about infrastructure in the last few years and the need to upgrade our infrastructure. That's also true for our water infrastructure. So our wastewater treatment plants and our water treatment. So we've been advocating for increasing the investment in our coastal infrastructure. So those are the three big issues, and I think those are true everywhere. We do have chapters in Hawaii and Puerto Rico. We also have international affiliates in Europe, Senegal, Morocco, Argentina, Japan, Australia, and Canada. So they're sort of sister organizations out there. For example, there's a big UN treaty on plastic pollution right now that we're kind of collectively working on because it's such a global issue.

Howard Fox [00:17:45]:

Excellent thinking of some of the initiatives, and campaigns that your organization has been working on. What kinds of successes can you share with our audience? Because, again, you've been around for a while. Your mission is growing. It's evolving. And what would our listeners benefit from knowing, like, we had a role in this or whether it's something going on in the Pacific Northwest, the Southeast? What can you share with us?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:18:20]:

Yeah, a couple of examples. We've passed 300 laws and policies over that to eliminate plastic pollution. We started locally banning single-use plastic bags that we found on the beaches, foam containers, and then we're able to scale that to state. So now we've helped pass over twelve, maybe 15 now state laws. We're just chipping away at these single-use plastics. Significantly, California passed a sort of Gluter Pays bill that's actually going to make the plastic producers responsible for the litter. So the same way that Apple's sort of taking back the iPhone now, we say, hey, if you're producing these bags of chips Frito Lay, you need to think about the end life of that bag and be responsible for that too. And we think that's going to kind of be a game changer for creating what they call a circular economy, which is really what we need, which is plastic should be recycled. Today we recycle less than 9% of our plastic, despite what we all throw in that bin in our kitchen. So we really need to create that circular economy. It's not us that's responsible; it's the industry that needs to do that. So we feel like we're really advancing the ball on that topic, and I think we're on our way to kind of transforming the plastic economy. So that's something that we're incredibly proud of. Another thing we worked on, was the Trump administration's proposed opening all of our coasts, more offshore drilling. This is something we opposed, and we really made an economic argument around that and were able to turn it into a bipartisan issue. So you saw Florida and South Carolina and Georgia decide they didn't want to drill off their coasts either. So I think we were particularly proud of that because often people see these as being a sort of red-blue issue. And this became, I think, an issue about protecting local economies and tourist economies which are rich and healthy, and not threatening them with something that is just too dangerous. We think there are better ways to provide that power. So that was another for us, a popular win. And then last, increasingly we've been creating these marine protected areas. We have beautiful parks on land. You guys have Red Rock just to the north of you. We've got Yosemite and Yellowstone, and we haven't really traditionally had the equivalent in the ocean. So there are National Marine Sanctuaries off Monterey in Florida. And there's a new one proposed for Chew Mash National Marine Sanctuary in the Santa Barbara area. So really trying to protect the special places in the ocean that we all love to visit.

Howard Fox [00:21:13]:

Very good. And if someone wants to get involved with the organization again, we're going to provide links back to the website and the social sites. What can a volunteer do when they first come into the organization? How do you get them involved? One that they're going to enjoy themselves, it's a positive experience, but also that they're going to stick with it?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:21:45]:

Yeah, that's a great question. We're really good at we do a lot of activities. We can roll up your sleeves and actually make a difference. And that could be planning an ocean-friendly garden. It could be joining us for beach cleanup, we convert restaurants to be plastic-free. For our ocean-friendly restaurants program, we have these chapters and clubs all across the country. So if you go to our website or look us up on any of the social and just Google Surfrider Foundation, you'll find us. We have literally thousands of volunteer opportunities across the country that are listed there. And for some reason, if you're not in a location that's coastal, most people visit the coast. So you can actually use your zip code or the zip code of the place you're visiting to see if there's an activity nearby and might be able to meet some locals in a place you're visiting if that's the case. But there are tons of ways to get involved, and we're a membership organization, too, so for $5 a year, you can also become a member.

Howard Fox [00:22:48]:

I love that. And it's funny. I went to graduate school in Santa Barbara. It was virtual, but I still went every quarter, and it's like I haven't been to Santa Barbara in a while. The marine sanctuaries are nearby and it's just I can't think of a better reason. And if I'm going to be out there volunteer a little bit, make it ecotourism kind of experience. So I think that's fantastic. As you kind of look back on your career in the work that you've been doing within the foundation, what's been a highlighter to one of your AHA moments?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:23:32]:

Yeah, I think probably one of the biggest AHA moments came a little later in my career. When I was growing up, I was a pretty avid swimmer, snorkeler, and spear diver. And in my town of Laguna Beach, where I grew up as a teenager in the late eighty s and early 90s, I'd go out spearfishing and it was hard to catch any fish. And I asked the older guys, what am I doing wrong? They told me the ocean was fished out, and the fish had been caught before, and at the time, I just took that as verbatim. You should have been here yesterday. I kind of missed out and through a lot of debate, and it was not an easy issue to solve because the fishermen didn't always love it. And I was kind of caught in the middle. My town was a marine reserve was created ten years ago, and no fishing zone. And in that ten-year period, it is now thriving, teeming with fish. You can't catch them, but they're out there. And so my twin boys are actually growing up with an ocean that's healthier than the one that I experienced. And in a time when we hear so much bad news about what's happening to the environment, I find it inspiring to know that there are places where we're already seeing improvements in health and that can be replicated in so many.

Howard Fox [00:24:54]:

That I love that. I just have to ask because for our listeners, and you'll see this on our segment that we'll put up on YouTube, chad has a nice big surfboard behind him with some branding on it. So do your boys also surf?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:25:10]:

Yeah, they're great surfers. I think it was by the time they were about twelve or 13, they could surf circles around me. So, yeah, we're a surfing family.

Howard Fox [00:25:21]:

Okay. Now, I'm also curious when there's the Take Your Kids to Work Day. What's that like when the kids join you in the office? What's a day in life for them?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:25:35]:

We've got a cool office, there's surfboard racks and people wearing flip-flops. But at the end of the day, it's really not that different than anybody else, right? We're answering phones, we're doing Zoom meetings, we're answering emails. The conservation work, there are moments of glory, but a lot of it's just grinding out work like every other job. We do have picnics at the beach and barbecues at the beach, so they like to go to those.

Howard Fox [00:26:00]:

Fantastic. So in the time we have left, what do you feel the future holds for the ocean, the waves, the beaches? And you've shared a little bit about your kids living and interacting and visiting waters that are a lot healthier than when you were a kid. We have all these challenges around us, but what do you feel? What's your gut tell you that the future holds for us?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:26:33]:

I think you're an environmental advocate. You're an optimist by nature and by definition because you wouldn't be doing this work if you didn't think things could get better. And I'm an optimist, and I really believe we have the solutions to all the problems that we face. Whether it's climate change or plastic or overfishing or any of these issues, we can solve them and do it in a way that everyone can thrive. That's what keeps me going. I know we know, have the answers. And so I feel like what we really need to do is build momentum and get people believing that and people acting. And so a lot of what we're trying to do is show that there are solutions, provide small examples like this marine reserve off my hometown or communities that have been able to survive without plastic, without sacrificing sort of quality of life. And so I think the solutions exist. We can find a way to get there. We can build enough momentum to protect the ocean. I do believe we can get to a place where oceans are healthier in the next 2030 years than they are today.

Howard Fox [00:27:42]:

Fantastic. And I have to say, just having the opportunity to chat with you, working with Grace and the National Marine Sanctuaries last year, I had no idea that the National Marine Sanctuaries even existed. And just knowing they exist, these reserves exist, the work that you're doing, just the initiatives along the coast, I mean, it's just a great way to feel like you're making a difference. You're not just a consumer. And so I would imagine I don't know if I'm there yet about having hope, but it sounds like, as you said, environmentalist conservationist, you're an optimist. And so that's a good thing to have. A good thing to be. Any final thoughts you would like to share with our listeners, Chad, about the work that you're doing or something that we could give to them, our listeners, about the importance of making a difference or a quote that inspires and informs them? What would be your insight to go?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:28:55]:

That's a great question. One other thing I'll add, and I can leave you with a little bit of a quote, but I really do think there's this great sort of triangle between outdoor recreation, including ocean recreation, the economy, and ocean recreation. And outdoor recreation drives a really incredible economy and environmental stewardship and protection. We want to recreate in a healthy place and people recreate in a healthy place. It's good for our economy. So I really do think there's sort of a great sort of positive feedback loop in the issues that you're talking about. The quote I would leave you with is there's a Margaret Mead quote, and I'll probably butcher it a little bit, but it's essentially never doubt that a small group of people can't make a difference because in fact, that's the only group that ever has. And it's a testament to grassroots organizing and people power. And I believe that, and I see it every day at Surfrider. So if you're out there and you love the oceans and coasts or you love the mountains or you love the desert, encourage you to get out there and get involved and make a difference because you will.

Howard Fox [00:30:02]:

Fantastic. And I fully believe that and agree as well. So thank you for that. And we will find the exact quote from Margaret Mead, and we will get that up on our show notes as well. We'll do that before we head out. If our listeners would like to learn more about you and the Surfrider Foundation, where are the best places for them to go?

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:30:23]:

Yeah, I mean, on our website and on our social channels. So if they just Google Surfrider Foundation, they're going to find it all. My bio, and my LinkedIn, Surfrider social channels, which I encourage people to follow. Okay.

Howard Fox [00:30:37]:

And we will provide all the backlinks to it as well. Listen, if you have any photos that you're open to sharing with us, we'd like, especially the grassroots, the locals getting involved in some of these initiatives love to be able to share a collage or two up on our website. So if you're open to sharing that, we'd love to have those for our absolutely.

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:31:01]:

I'll send some stuff your way.

Howard Fox [00:31:02]:

Fantastic. Well, Chad, it's been a pleasure to have you on the Outdoor Adventure Series podcast. And for our listeners, as you all know, the people that know me know I'm an Opportunistic podcaster, and I had seen a post or something that Chad had shared. I guess they were doing some recruiting for a position and Grace Potito Williamson had shared and liked it. And I said, well, Chad would be a great individual on the podcast, so that's exactly how this all panned out. So when you see that chance encounter, even if it's virtual, take advantage of it because today we just had a fantastic episode with Chad, and we learned about the Surfrider Foundation. So Chad, thank you again for joining and informing and helping to educate us.

Dr. Chad Nelsen [00:31:54]:

Well, thanks for having me, and thanks to Grace for connecting the dots. I appreciate it.

Howard Fox [00:31:58]:

Fantastic. Listen, stay in the line. We're going to do a quick close and you and I can have a final chat. OK. All right, folks, we have just been chatting with Dr. Chad Nelson, CEO of the surf rider foundation. And really it's a great addition to a lot of our conversations, especially last year with the National Marine Sanctuaries. But we've had a chance to go a little bit more local, an organization that has developed a grassroots network of initiatives throughout the US. And as there's a lot of coastline here in the US. And it's not even the ocean coastline, but it's also up in the Great Lakes as well. And so it has really been enjoyable to hear about the work that the Surf Rider Foundation is involved with to help protect our coastlines, our internal waterways, and really just the activities to help change the world for a better place. And heaven knows, there's so much going on in climate change, and there's so many stresses. But knowing that there are organizations like the Surfrider Foundation and the many volunteers who are an activist and the folks that deal with the politicians at the state and federal level, local level, they're active day by day involved with helping to make positive changes. And so, as Chad had alluded to, he's an eternal optimist. And so I would imagine that there is hope if we all get up off of our chairs, put down the little handheld computer, and go out there, get some exercise, and make a difference along the way. Now, do go out and check the Surfrider Foundation's website. Surfrider.org will provide those backlinks as well as to their social sites, too. Now for us, you can visit us on the Outdoor Adventure Series webpage. All of our episodes are there. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a comment. Please share it. If you think somebody would enjoy getting to know the foundation, that's that's the goal here is take the story and share it to people who you think will benefit or be interested in it. And you can also find this and other episodes on our social sites, LinkedIn and Facebook. And we are on all of the major podcasting directories. okay, folks, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, go out there, have a phenomenal day, and we will see you on a future episode of the Outdoor Adventure Series Podcast. Take care now.