Zane Schweitzer

Innovate and Inspire

“My lifelong respect for the environment was passed down to me by my family. Growing up in Hawai’i in a culture in which environmentalism is almost a given also has a lot to with it. In Hawaii, we have a connection with nature from the mountains to the sea. Our “kuleana” or privileged responsibility, to care for the land and waters could be derived from the old way of living that was dependent on the health of the complete environment. My dad passed down the pride and respect for “mauka to makai” or mountains to the ocean’s mentality through the lifestyle he shared with me that embraced this connection to land, water, and nature. My dad would take me dirt biking up in the mountains or fishing in the middle of the ocean far from land and we’d eat and drink from the ocean and land providing for our family and connecting with nature. It is my ethos. And then, as I started to make a profession from ocean sports, I realized my competitors and I have a huge opportunity because the power of influence our sports have along with the opportunity to share these unique experiences and appreciation for the ocean. For me, the Ocean is so much more than a big, unknown world, it is my classroom, playground, church and place of refuge that I am committed to honor and respect.

Another way I’ve taken strides toward advocating living a #DeepBlueLife is through inspiring our future generations through my nonprofit kid’s clinics, “InZane Super Groms”. I have always enjoyed sharing the joy and opportunity that the ocean has brought to my life ever since I was a young super grom myself. My parents influenced me early on at 12 years old when I first started traveling for Windsurf events with Starboard. They encourage me to bring clothes, old gear and toys to donate to the kids in the communities I was visiting and to organize a day where I can get the athletes together and teach the local kids some windsurfing, surfing or later on SUP. Flash forward 13 years and now today I am more proud than any of my world titles to not only have taught thousands of kids all over the world to enjoy the ocean through sport but also to respect the ocean and our environment as not only our playground but as well our voiceless friend and allow our “blue life choices” to reflect a positive impact on this environment we benefit from. Inspiring kids with the healthy active lifestyle of being a waterman and water women comes with a responsibility to honor by being a guardian of our oceans. Because without the health of our ocean, much more than just our playgrounds may be lost…”