Patagonia today is excited to announce the global release of The Fisherman’s Son, a new 30-minute film chronicling Ramón Navarro’s rise to the top of the big wave surfing world and his growing voice as an environmental activist.
When one of Chile’s most iconic surf spots and Navarro’s home break of Punta de Lobos came under the threat of commercial development, Ramón, the son of a subsistence fisherman, turned his platform as a surfer into a campaign to protect a place critical to his sport and near to his heart.
Patagonia produced and Chris Malloy directed The Fisherman’s Son, in association with Save The Waves. It’s available for free to audiences around the world on Patagonia.com, YouTube and Vimeo – and it’s being distributed along with a call for individuals to take action and help Navarro protect Punta de Lobos forever by donating money to Save The Waves. The film has already received praise, recently winning The 5Points Award 2015 at the 5Point Film Festival in Carbondale, Colorado.
“I have traveled all around the world only to realize the most amazing place is my own backyard at Punta de Lobos,” said Navarro. “I want to protect this place for the fishermen and surfers who live there now and for the generations to come. Being given the opportunity to tell the story of my community through this film has been incredible, and I’m humbled at the response from people who want to get involved themselves.”
With leadership from Navarro and support from Save The Waves, local Chileans have so far been effective at holding back the tide of development around Punta de Lobos that would transform the point – impacting surf culture, hurting the local fishing trade and devastating the environment. The area was declared a World Surfing Reserve in 2014.
But the area remains under serious threat. Crowd-sourced funds generated by the campaign go directly towards the development of a conservation master plan and foundation to protect the point, protecting both the traditional fishing culture and local marine biodiversity.
You can watch The Fisherman’s Son and donate money to help the campaign here. 100% of funding and t-shirt sales go directly to preserve and protect Punta de Lobos.
The New Localism
The Fisherman’s Son and Patagonia’s campaign to save Punta de Lobos come as part of a new style of environmental activism initiated by Patagonia focused on rallying global support around critical backyard conservation initiatives.
In developing the new campaign framework, Patagonia has drawn on two main sources of inspiration: the sports we love, which allow us to spend time in nature, and the grassroots activists working in their own communities to protect their piece of the planet, which Patagonia has supported for years through the grants program.
“The New Localism recognizes we can no longer pass through remote, wild places and trust they will remain that way,” said Hans Cole, Patagonia Environmental Advocacy and Campaigns Manager. “Patagonia is bringing our resources to bear on threats to our planet, far and wide, by telling stories of athletes and activists who remind us we’re all locals living in a global world and we all have a chance to make a difference.
Moving forward, Patagonia will be telling stories through films that inspire people to take action – centered around surfing, trail running, fly fishing, skiing and snowboarding, and rock climbing.
For example, Patagonia this spring released Mile For Mile, a film that celebrates Patagonia National Park through the sport of trail running and asks customers to donate money to fund 50 miles of trails needed to complete the park (Patagonia will match every donation). And Defined by the Line, which will be released next week, encourages our customers to help protect a place where climbers have long come for dirty, rowdy adventures – the Bears Ears region in Southeastern Utah.
Each campaign will have a dedicated activism page at Patagonia.com/TheNewLocalism where customers can watch the films, get informed, take action and encourage their friends and family to do the same through social media.
Links to More Information About The Fisherman’s Son:
#LobosPorSiempre
#ProtectThePoint