Surf and Sustainability Program – Rio de Janeiro

1st time ever to feel sand and water at a beachThe ocean being presented by the BSP champion

Ecoencontro is a 3-4 hour seminar about sustainability in coastal ecosystems and the role that surf can play in the decision making process. It was held in Ubatuba (Aquarium), Florianópolis (Praia Mole hotel) and in Rio (Windsor hotel) and brought a total of 340 people together, among them regional NGO leaderships, professional and amateur surfers, students, businessmen and government representatives.

The three Ecoencontros provoked healthy discussions and debates on the creation of nationwide networks for the beaches and how the hierarchy of brazilian surfing (conferedation, fedration, association to surf school) can take a leading role in stewardship and monitoring functions.

Ecoencontro Seminars

Beach cleanups were carried out at each of the 5 beaches visited by the BSP circuit and involved Pro Surfers, production crew, environmental leaderships, surf schools and the general public on the beach. A total of 940kg of litter was collected, mainly plastic and micro litter such as ice cream packaging, plastic bottle tops, straws and hundreds of cigarette butts.

In Búzios we were invited by local NGO activists to organize a cleanup at a rare ecosystem on the other side of the peninsula, a rocky beach mangrove facing the ocean that recieves ocean going plastic by the truck load. We partnered with the local Agenda 21 team, a local school, SPORTV reporters and film crew and brought pro surfers with us and in around two hours we removed nearly half a ton of plastic from the 1 km stretch of this spectacular open ocean facing mangrove.

Beach Cleanups

Beach Cleanups - moments

Beach Cleanups – Mangue de Pedra, Búzios

The CO2 emissions of the Brasil Surf Pro 2010 circuit are being neutralized through the planting of Atlantic Rainforest tree saplings.This service is being carried out by Instituto Terra, a NGO specialized in reforestation.

The only exception was in Ubatuba where a partnership was formed between the local environmental government agency and a forest restoration company to generate a precedent in the region. The 150 trees were planted close to the contest site involving the local school also.

Carboneutralization

Extra Regional Activities

Index:

1.Ubatuba - Dia da Volta – release of 4 sea turtles

2.Porto de Galinhas (Cupe) – Sustainable Breakfast get together

3.Búzios – Strategic Sustainability Planning speech

4.Rio de Janeiro –Vegetation restoration

1. Ubatuba – “Dia da Volta”

Our main NGO partner project in the region, TAMAR, which celebrated 30 years of service along Brazil´s coastline, and 20 at the Ubatuba base, carried out a simultaneous release of rehabilitated sea tutles at all of their 12 bases along the country´s coastline, “Dia da Volta” which took place on Saturday (10/04), at 16h30 when 4 rehabilitated sea turtles were released to their natural habitat, right in front of the contest structure, between quarter final heats. Three of the pro surfers participated in the activity, Suelen Naraisa, Guga Arruda and Franklin Serpa as well as TV celebrity Fernanda Pontes of TV Jam.

On Satuday morning of the contest a breakfast get together was organized which brought together local community and environmental leaders, pro surfers and several surfing association/federation representatives along with coordenators of some of the most successful marine biodiversity projects in Brasil – Rotador Dolphin, Manatee, Shark, Coral and Sea Horse.

The two main objectives were to:1.Empower the local environmental community leaders which have suffered greatly from predatory tourism and poor government regulation through a healthy exchange of information and methodologies with successful projects and their coodenators, and2.Discuss the role that surf can have in the preservation of coastal biodiversity.

2. Porto de Galinhas (Cupe) – Sustainability Breakfast

On invitation by BSP and the Búzios Municipal Government, Roberto Vámos, Brasil representative of the NGO The Climate Project, founded by Nobel Peace Prize holder, Al Gore, delivered an eye opening speech regarding Global Warming and Strategic Sustainability Planning. Present at the speech were 65 people including the Mayor and 9 of the main government department managers as well as leading local businessmen and NGO´s.

3. Búzios – Strategic Sustainability Planning speech

4. Rio de Janeiro –Vegetation restoration

700 saplings of beach vegetation species were planted in the direct influence area of the contest at Barra da Tijuca beach. The BSP 2010 male champion, Jean da Silva and many of the production crew, sponsors and VIP celebrities participated in the planting. This activity was carried out in partnership with Rio´s governmental department for the environment

1. UBATUBA :Term of Conduct agreement Local authorities were very surprised by the depth and seriousness of the BSP environmental program and asked if we could help put together a document to pressure other contest organizers to adopt at least certain basic criteria.

Co-signed by Ubatuba Municipal Secretary for the Environment, Brasil 1 Esportes, Ubatuba Surfing Association and Itamabuca Beach Condominium Association, this document establishes from now on 10 basic environemtal criteria for holding future events on Itamambuca beach.

Documents

1. Cupe: Sustainable Surfer´s Code During the contest at Cupe (PE) the general surfing community was consulted as to what could be the key 10 guidelines for a code of Sustainable Conduct for surfers. Several pro surfers, judges, Federation and Association staff and sponsors were all consulted so as to put together a participative list of guidelines.

This was then blown up into a large banner and fixed in the surfers area at the Barra event and signed by many of the top pros.

Documents

• Protective beach vegetation fencing:Ubatuba - 90m,Joaquina - 110m,Barra da Tijuca - 240mTotal = 440m of eucalyptus fencing protecting3400m2 of beach and dune vegetation

• 6300 plastic disposable cups were not consumed + 3400 plastic bottles

• 440 volunteers participated in beach cleanups • 1616 children participated in the educational

activities• 420 people participated in the meetings and

seminars on coastal sustainability

BSP Numbers Summary

• 940kg of litter was collected in the beach cleanups

• 1459kg of waste diverted to recycling• 326 trees planted for CO2 offsetting• 700 seedlings/saplings of beach vegetation

planted

.

• 34 TV interviews related to the BSP sustainability program activities

• 72 minutes of television coverage of the BSP sustainability activities

• 93 magazine or newspaper articles• 29 website articles or interviews• 1.3 million comments on social media• Total media coverage value – 1.2 milion

BSP Media Summary

PARCEIROS

UBATUBA (ITAMAMBUCA):•Associação de Surf da Ubatuba•Projeto TAMAR•Projeto Praia Viva•Aquário de Ubatuba•Associação de Moradores de Itamambuca•e-Board•Recicla Ubatuba – Cooperativa de Reciclagem da Ubatuba•Prefeitura de Ubatuba, através das Secretarias de Meio Ambiente e Educação

PORTO DE GALINHAS (CUPE):Projetos Hippocampus, Tubarão, Golfinho Rotador e Peixe Boi;Federação Nordestino de SurfFederação de Surf do PernambucoRECICLE – Ass. De Catadores do Porto de Galinhas

Partnerships

BÚZIOS:•Núcleo Ecológico Zé Gonçalves;•ACARE – Ass. De Catadores de Recicláveis de Búzios•Projeto Coral Vivo;•Prefeitura de Búzios, através das Secretarias de Meio Ambiente e Educação;

FLORIANÓPOLIS•ACES – Associação Catarinense de Escolas de Surf, •FECASURF – Federação Catarinense de Surf, •ASJ – Associação de Surf da Joaquina,•Floripa Surf Clube•Associação de surf da Praia Mole•Salva Surf•Pixurum,•CCEA – Projeto Procurando Caminhos•Escola do Mar•Secretaria Municipal de Educação

Partnerships

RIO DE JANEIRO:•Secretaria Municipal de Esportes;•Secretaria Municipal do Meio Ambiente•FESERJ – Federação de Surf do Rio de Janeiro•ASBT – Associação de Surf da Barra da Tijuca•COMLURB•Instituto E•Escola de Surf do Rico•O SURFE •Rocinha Surf Escola•COOPAMA

Partnerships

1. BSP 2011. Use the circuit to structure a nationwide articulated network, starting with the formulation of an internet portal.

2. Standardize this methodology within the hierarchy of Brazilian surf. Through the Confederação de Surf Brasileira implement these practices in State and Regional surfing circuits.

3. Activate the network. The formal hierarchy from Confederation all the way to registered surf school practically covers the entire coastline. It is an excellent network waiting to be switched on and called into action for the coastal ecosystems.

4. Strengthen the media relationships. SPORTV, Multishow, Waves, Fluir and TV Jam are the main surfing media players. All have shown willingness to discuss deeper relations.

5. WT – World Tour and WQS – World Qualifying Series. The two pillars of world professional surfing could become platforms for coastal sustainability benchmarking practices regarding green events practices and sustainable tourism.

6. ISA – International Surfing Association, should be more active regarding sustainable surfing practices.

Opportunities for the future

Thankyou for listening

Grande abraço,Equipe Surfrider Foundation Brasil