Green Surf Festival Brings SUP & Sustainability

NOLI, Italy - From 14-16 July 2017, Noli, Italy will host the Green Surf Festival. Three days dedicated to SUP, surf & sustainability with the aim of reconnecting people back to nature, and giving all festival goers the inspiration, motivation, and most importantly, the tools to preserve & protect their environment.

In 2016, the small coastal town hosted the Noli SUP Race. The event attracted racers from across Europe and proved to be one of the best European SUP events of the year. The Green Surf Festival presented by Starboard is a natural evolution of last year’s event. Its founders, a small group of ocean & nature enthusiasts decided to expand the focus of the event. Franz Orsi, local stand up paddler and coach of SUP's Portuguese national team, wanted to run more than just another SUP race, and started to explore how the event could raise awareness of important sustainability issues.

The event will no doubt attract SUP & watersports enthusiasts, but also those wishing to learn more about sustainable living. The weekend is jam packed with outdoor activities; paddle board trips, winch surf and surfskate sessions, SUP yoga, ‘Green Talks’ by leading sustainability experts, kids activities, music, great local food, and of course, international SUP races & fun competitions.

2016 Noli SUP Race. | Photos Courtesy: Euro SUP Tour

This year the Noli SUP Race will be one of the most important Open SUP events in Europe where international paddlers will gather and compete both in the Elite race (long distance on Saturday and sprints on Sunday) and in the amateur races. Sunday will be also dedicated to a charity event - Ride for the Cause, essentially a fun SUP paddle out open to everybody - intended to raise funds for social and environmental non-profits working both locally and internationally.

Franz Orsi: “We tried to bring together in an innovative and creative format watersports, entertainment and environmental culture. It is the first time that SUP and environmental issues come together in such a cool and fun way. Our festival in fact is all about being in sync with nature while having fun doing what we like the most: enjoy the ocean!”

The Green Surf Festival will be a sustainable eco-friendly event. The event team is working alongside Sustainable Surf to run a Deep Blue Event, focused on creating “Ocean Friendly” event, that sets a clear path for reducing environmental impacts, while also providing social benefits for the local community. Deep Blue Events are independently verified, and require event organisers to report on five core categories of environmental impact; Waste, Energy, Transportation, Community Support & carbon footprint.

2016 Noli SUP Race. | Photo Courtesy: Euro SUP Tour

In addition to the main activities of the weekend, the Green Surf Festival will play host to a SUP industry gathering. The aim of this gathering, Protect Blue, coordinated by Linzi Hawkin, surfer and founder of SUPKids, is to bring together key players within the SUP industry to create a space to have good conversations about sustainability and explore how the industry can work together to lead the way. For more information on the event click HERE.

To find a SUP event near you see the Supconnect Events Calendar.