The findings of this study bring us closer to understanding the diverse motivations behind surf tourism workers, particularly those in emerging economies in the Global South, where opportunities and resources are often inversely proportional to the urge to exploit them. Such insights not only benefit managers, business owners, and other economic actors in the industry, but also contribute to discussions of sustainability, sustainable development goals and decolonial perspectives within the context of surfing.
But perhaps more importantly, the findings also point to a potential solution to the conundrum; a solution that revolves around waves, yet is not only about the waves. “The surf workers in our sample were driven by a passion far exceeding traditional ‘job satisfaction’,” the researchers write. “They rather typified a “career with a heart” ideal with key components including first, alignment with one’s own values, second, the generation of strong positive emotions, and a third, a fit with deeper life goals beyond work.”
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The author and Surf Simply would like to thank Michelle Mielly for her assistance with the article, and photographer Callum Morse for sharing his images.
