Campaigns

Fanatic, Duotone & ION

Clean Beach Day

Dates for 2021 International Clean Beach Day will be announced soon - check back!

The ocean is our playground, our race track and relaxation zone, our source of inspiration and thrill. We love it. Not only for the endless opportunities it offers in regard to Windsurfing, Winging and Stand Up Paddling but also for the power, strength, and beauty it exudes. Without oceans and lakes our sports wouldn’t exist. Yet this essential part of our lives is seriously threatened.

Huge amounts of garbage, especially plastic, are endangering our oceans and the wildlife living in it. By now, plastic makes up for most of the marine litter worldwide. Experts estimate it at millions of tons. And those numbers are growing. According to the UN more than 8 million tons of plastic leak into the ocean each year – equal to dumping a garbage truck of plastic every minute. If we continue dumping items such as plastic bottles, bags, and cups after a single use at our current rate, estimates suggest that by 2050 oceans will carry more plastic than fish. Plastic is particularly harmful to the environment as it doesn’t break down easily. A PET bottle for example takes up to 450 years to completely decompose.

Erik Solheim, head of the UN Environment Programme, said, "It is past time that we tackle the plastic problem that blights our oceans. Plastic pollution is surfing onto Indonesian beaches, settling onto the ocean floor at the North Pole, and rising through the food chain onto our dinner tables. We’ve stood by too long as the problem has gotten worse. It must stop."

Let’s take action and not be the ones to wait for someone else to take care of it. Join us for the worldwide Clean Beach Days by Fanatic, Duotone and ION. Find locations and more information for our 2021 Clean Beach Day soon! See you there!

Partnerships in Sustainability Projects

Our Ambassadors

Lizzy Carr

Plastic Patrol

Thankfully, one incredible Stand Up Paddleboarder – Lizzie Carr - is spearheading a global mission to rid the world of plastic pollution, by tackling it from its root - canals and rivers all over world – thereby intercepting it before it reaches the oceans.

Already a keen adventurer and environmentalist, Lizzie originally got into SUP for fitness, but soon noticed that the waterways around London where she paddled were clogged with plastic waste. Lizzie set up a non-profit organisation that has grown to become a global movement of like-minded people working together on land and water to protect the environment we love.

Plastic Patrol helps to organise clean-ups all over the world (44 countries and counting), bringing communities together at specified events to identify and collect plastic waste, photograph and log the evidence through the Plastic Patrol App, before clearing it away. On World Cleenup Day Plastic Patrol was organising global clean up actions in differents segments - a great achievement - which we're proudly supporting!

More info/donations/APP:

plasticpatrol.co.uk

Michael Walther

Zero Emissions

Since 2008, Michael is pursuing two goals with his projects. With his extreme adventure tours, he wants to highlight the possibilities of climate-friendly technologies and demonstrate that it is often a matter of will and not of skill when it comes to achieving goals – on both board development and in climate protection. In 2018 Michael was paddling to the edge of the glaciers in Greenland to raise awareness for climate change. He was following “The Great Route” from Aasiaat to Ilulissat to find out more about the life on the rough island in the past and in the present. This trip showed that we have to act, to protect this unique northern region and of course our whole planet, highlighting how radical climate change is already here. In May 2019 he did another project called “Emission-free through Schleswig-Holstein” where he travelled across Germany’s northernmost state via SUP – 700 km.

Michael and his projects are supported by Fanatic and we're in close contact with him also about ways to improve our products to become more sustainable.

More info/donations:

zeroemissions.eu

Thomas Oschwald

Stand Up For Safe Water

SUP adventurer Thomas Oschwald from Switzerland paddles from the North Sea up the Rhine to the Tomasee at 2 345 meters above sea level right now. He travels for 3 000 kilometers and is on the water for 2 – 3 months. His tour takes him through 6 countries – all for a destination that is actually located only a few kilometers away from his home. On the first 1600 km long stage to the mouth of the Rhine, the adventurer deliberately moved away from the clean spring water. In this section, he experienced first-hand what it means when clean drinking water does not simply bubble out of the tap. A water cleansing system for bottled water forces the adventurer to get along with the water that surrounds him.

Thomas has already done several SUP micro expeditions and is always in search of new challenges in sports and everyday life, he keeps pushing his limits. His inner conviction is that it forces him to face all the big and small challenges in life while he breaks out of the everyday rhythm and strides out into new worlds.

More info/donations:

teachandtravel.ch

Pascal Rösler

Pure Water for Generations

In 2017 Pascal Roesler, a businessman from Munich, paddled from Munich to the mouth of the Danube into the Black Sea, 2 467 km and 63 days on the water with his Falcon Air, about 600 000 paddle strokes in total. He did that all for a good cause – to raise awareness of the need for clean water, essential for our planet’s survival. In 2018 he went down the river Salzach, accompanied by our river SUP ambassador Oliver Heldt. The Salzach runs 225 kilometers before flowing into the river Inn. Pascal started his tour from the source near the Salzachgeier to demonstrate how the river changes on its way. In July 2019 he visited several schools in Bavaria to demonstrate awareness towards our water and environment. With 30 Fanatic SUPs, SUPing was a big part of this programme with over 1000 students enjoying the experience and learning more about sustainability and the role they can play in safeguarding our planet for future generations. In the meantime, Pascal has left his full time employment to
dedicate his time and effort to saving the environment with many exciting new projects to come.

More info/donations:

pure-water-for-generations.com