Surfers for Change

19th December 2011

Kyle Theirmann is a 21 year old pro surfer who has created some serious waves around the world. He is the creator and host of the hit youtube series, Surfing For Change.

Combining surfing great waves with making a series of short films about current issues, Thiermann focuses on the power you have to create a better world through everyday decisions.

His first youtube movie in the series,  Claim Your Change, details how money kept in multinational banks is used to finance destructive projects all over the world. One such project, a proposed coal-fired powerplant in Constitucion, Chile, home of a world-class surf spot and fishing village, is the subject of the movie.

This video inspired people to move hundreds of million of dollars out of centralized banks into local banks and credit unions, and reached people throughout North America, South America, Africa and much of Europe.

Since then, he has made movies ranging from the importance of shopping locally, to following a plastic bag to Hawaii.

Kyle has surfed his way across Indonesia, Chile, Peru, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Mexico, Sri Lanka, Australia, Hawaii and throughout the US.

He graduated from  Gaia University with a BA in Green Business. He uses the support from his sponsors, including  Patagonia,  Sector 9 and  Clif Bar to generate publicity that encourages people to take action to transform their communities, and the world.

Kyle’s work has been featured in dozens of media outlets worldwide including  Surfer Magazine, The  Huffington Post,  Outside Magazine,  Discovery Channel, and  Surfing Magazine to name a few.

Kyle Speaks at Universities and high schools throughout the country and he has been the keynote speaker at  One World Children’s Fund. He was the recipient of the  Peter Benchley Blue Vision Youth Award, the  Brower Youth Award, and the Surfrider Environmental Achievement Award.

Kyle lives in Santa Cruz, California and recently built a skateboard ramp in his backyard with friends.


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