Who Are You Nominating For The Aloha Award?

In a world of dark clouds, aspire to be the light. That’s the message behind the Aloha Award. Barreling into its seventh year, the award, presented by the International Surf Therapy Organization, endeavors to recognize and celebrate agents of change in surfing and ocean communities around the world. And with the winner scoring a week’s stay on Namotu in Fiji, it’s a pretty nice award to win.

If you know anybody that’s making the world a better place through surfing or the sea, the nomination window is currently open for the 2024 Aloha Award. The award is ultimately decided by a panel of five pretty epic judges, including Championship Tour surfer Brisa Hennessy, South African charger Greg Bertish and Caribbean trailblazer Chris Dennis.

“Nominations should make a case for why the nominee deserves to receive the award (e.g., attitude in the water, community engagement outside the water) and typically include relevant links to websites and social media profiles,” reads the Aloha Award website. “A nominee may receive multiple nominations, and may be nominated year-after-year, but that will not necessarily increase his/her/their chances of winning the award or being named a finalist.”

Looking at the previous winners of the Aloha Award, it’s fascinating to see the power that surfing and the ocean can have to bring positive change to this world. Last year’s winner, Ben Brondsema, had been a policeman in the Netherlands struggling with PTSD before surfing saved him. Founding the organization Surfivor, he now uses surf therapy to work with first responders and veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.

In 2022, Costa Rica’s Mike Castro was recognized for the work of his non-profit, Olas y Sonrisas, which helps at-risk youth in the Central American country. Before that, in 2021, Dennis and his Waves For Hope group were honored for the work they do with underserved youth in Trinidad and Tobago. The list goes on and every, single winner is remarkably impressive and good-hearted.

The Aloha Award was first launched in 2018 by Mark Hartmann as a means to “reward and support exceptional individuals in the global surf & ocean sports communities who, in addition to cultivating and sharing their joy of surfing or other ocean sports with others, are making meaningful contributions to the well-being of their communities.”

Not just looking for those inspiring social change, the Aloha Award is also on the lookout for individuals fighting the good fight for the environment and putting ocean conservation and stewardship at the forefront.

The nomination window for the Aloha Award is open through the end of March. As noted the winner will receive a trip to Namotu to simply go surf and enjoy the island life. They also get a $10,000 donation to the charity of their choosing and a $2,500 grant to attend the International Surf Therapy Organization conference next year.