Below is a great clip from the 2011 Global Wave Conference about surfing and economics. Surfing (and surfers) are often overlooked as an economically irrelevant body. But, there are more surfers than ever (it’s estimated that there are 3.3 million surfers in the U.S. now) and we undoubtedly have buying power (In the U.S. we collectively spend between $2-5 BILLION per year in the communities where we go surfing) . If we as surfers choose to band together and prioritize an issue (say keeping our oceans unpolluted and sustainably fished) we do have the numbers and weight of industry to sway decision-makers and influence local and national policy.
Chad NELSEN, Economic Profile of US Surfers by SurfriderEurope
The video above presents the results of the Surfrider/Surf-First US Surf Economics report at the 2011 Global Wave Conference in San Sebastian, Spain. This is the first national report on the recreational, demographic and economic characteristics of surfers. You can find the report here.
You can also check out all of the talks given the the 2011 Global Wave Conference and read more from Chad Nelsen on Surfrider’s Coastal Blog.
