MIIS adventures- Ocean and Coastal Resource Management

My first week at Save the Waves has come and gone. I am lucky to work with a dedicated and unique group of people. Nick Strong-Cvetich, the executive director, does a great job introducing what the Save the Waves staff is up to currently:

STW newsletter May 2013

Here is also a picture of the staff:

(Left to right: Nick Mucha, Me!, Justin Wright, Gavin Comstock, and Nick Strong-Cvetich)

My fellowship from the CBE will be working with Save the Waves and based in Peru and Chile. I will be working on an economic valuation study of the surf spots in these areas. The study in Peru will be based in Huanchaco, a newly approved world surfing reserve. This site boats some pretty amazing waves as well as being one of the first pioneers of surfing. The Caballitos de Totora are reputed to be the first surfing crafts, used by artisanal fishermen for hundreds of years. The project in Chile is in its earlier phase, and will be based in Pichilemu. Pichilemu is a popular surf area in Chile, visited by both local and international surfers.

I will be at each site for approximately a month, gathering data and establishing contacts. The ultimate purpose of the research project is to complete the establishment of Huanchaco as a world surfing reserve and to explore the possibility of Pichilemu as a future world surfing reserve.                                                  Waves at Huachaco, Peru