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Greetings Surfriders!
As the industrial revolution grew throughout the
middle of the last century, Western society found
unprecidented ways of pulling the world apart: they
engineered cheap energy and thriving capitalist
economies and endless food sources. And one word:
plastic. No one noticed the small steps that chiseled
away at major pieces of our planet until they were very
big problems.
It's an unfortunate reality that the issues we now face
in our generation are greater than ever. The
proliferation of the very things that made humanity
thrive now threaten to contribute to its suffering.
Forests are disappearing. Ice is melting. Water
supplies are dwindling. Even Science magazine
predicted that all ocean life will collapse on itself as
early as 2064.
So I was recently challenged by an old professor who
teaches here in San Francisco--the very man who
pointed out to me that his generation had pulled the
world apart--he said it was our generation's challenge
to put it back
together.
After reading Sierra Club President Adam Werbauch's
1995 speech "Environmentalism is Dead", an idea
occurred to me. The takeaway of this now-famous
speech is that for too long environmentalism was
approached as an isolated movement with singular
issues to solve. He argues that all movements are
interconnected in a fundamental way and should be
viewed as such.
So I'll take this one step further to say that no one's
effort is isolated. However small the deed, good or
bad, our actions are interconnected not just in
personality, but in reality. By cleaning up the beach a
fish may not starve on plastic debris in its stomach.
The result is more fish in the ocean, and inadvertently
you've fed an entire ecosystem that spans the globe.
Just like the small and "harmless" steps that got us
here, so too may the small contributions towards the
solutions feel futile or insignificant. All-too-often they'll
go unnoticed and unrewarded. But just as previous
generations took small steps into big problems, I
believe we also can take small steps out.
So thank you to everyone for your often overlooked
contributions. They may be solving bigger issues than
you ever imagined. And if you take the old professor's
challenge seriously (as I do), thank you for rising to
our generation's challenge of putting the world back
together again.
Thanks for reading, and see you out in the water!
Wes
| Become a Styrobuster! |
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Effective June 1, 2007, food vendors and
restaurants
in SF must use compostable or recyclable to-go
containers. Polystryrene foam (Styrofoam)
disposable food service ware can no longer be used
for food prepared in San Francisco.
The Styrobuster campaign are still looking
for people to visit San Francisco restaurants and
inform them of their choices for the upcoming
styrofoam ban in the city.
If you haven't had the chance to "Styrobust" join The
Department of the Environment at their next training!
What: Styrobuster Training
When: Tuesday, April 29th, 5:30-6:30
Where: Meet in the SFE Eco-Center, 11 Grove
Street
Space is limited to 25 people. If you are definitely
interested in attending, please respond to kimberly.swinford-
devries@sfgov.org
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| Teton Gravity Research (TGR) Surf Movie Night! |
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What: Surf Movie by Teton Gravity
Research,
put on by Surfrider San Francisco (charity event for our
chapter!)
Where: Mezzanine in San
Francisco
When: Friday, May 30. Doors at 8pm.
Cost: tbd. Tickets will be available on Mezz
anine website and at the door.
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| Roxy Surf Night - Meet the Roxy Pros! |
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What: Booksigning party, film screening,
Sports Basement's 15% off sale, raffle
When: Wednesday, April 30th, 6pm - 9pm
Where: Sports Basement - Potrero Hill Store
1590 Bryant St, San Francisco (between 15th & 16th
St)
Meet the Roxy Surf Team!
From 6pm-8pm, join the booksigning celebration
for "Fearlessness: The Story of Lisa Andersen"
and "Surf Girl Roxy."
Roxy Pros on hand include Jennifer Smith, the recent
World Longboard Champ ; Santa Cruz's Jenny
Useldinger, a multi-timeBillabong XXL finalist and
Mavericks surfer; and top longboarder Julie Cox.
Enjoy light food, drinks and beer...and get 15% off all
Sports Basement purchases during 6pm-8pm.
At 8:15pm, enjoy a screening of Roxy's "Shimmer"
film, featuring legend Lisa Andersen, Roxy superstars
Sofia Mulanovich, Carissa Moore, Kassia Meador and
others ripping on the world's best waves. For event
details and to RSVP, visit: http://www.zunas
urf.com/roxy
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| Ocean Beach Vision Council - BE HEARD JUNE 4! |
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The newly-formed Ocean Beach Vision Council
are still trying to figure out how to proceed, and early in
the process is the perfect time for Surfrider to get in
with our vision and ideas of how the planning and
maintenance of Ocean Beach should
proceed.
The first public meeting is tenatively scheduled for
Wednesday, June 4, so mark your calendars
and stay tuned for
more information! Our chapter will be there in force to
ensure the politicians and council members know that
we care about the future of Ocean Beach and want to
see positive changes at our local beach!
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Next Beach Cleanup: Sunday May 4, 10am at Sloat Avenue |
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Above: Ocean Beach in
1915.
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