Episode 1: The Connection Between Coral Reefs and SPF
Heart Reef, part of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. By Kathryn Romeyn
It’s hammered into our heads that we should wear sunscreen at the beach, when snorkeling, surfing, swimming and essentially every minute we’re outside. But certain SPFs actually do incredible damage to marine environments. To learn more about the effects chemical sunscreens have on coral reefs and, most importantly, what we can do to reduce those negative impacts moving forward, we chatted with a trio of experts. First up is Katie Day, an environmental scientist from the Surfrider Foundation who speaks about extensive research that links oxybenzone - a common sunscreen ingredient - to physical deformities, bleaching and other traumas to ocean-dwelling creatures. (Katie wrote a helpful guide to reef-friendly products that you can find here.) Brian Guadagno, who founded the pioneering reef-safe sunscreen brand Raw Elements, shares his journey and what all sun-seekers can do to stay safe. And finally, we hear from Theresa van Greunen, marketing director for Hawaii’s Aqua-Aston hospitality brand, about the tourism-driven initiative, For Our Reef, she helped create that led to Hawaii banning non–reef safe products.
Kathryn snorkels over the Great Astrolabe Reef in Fiji.
You can follow them on Instagram, too, at @surfrider, @rawelementsusa and @aquaaston, respectively. Plus, find Eric’s National Geographic Traveler informative piece on the subject here.