Nearly 300 people from throughout California gathered in Sacramento on Tuesday to celebrate the 21st annual California Ocean Day advocacy event. Attendees called on state legislators to support a slate of bills designed to protect our ocean, waves, and beaches from offshore oil drilling and plastic pollution, to respond to the health crisis in the Tijuana River Valley, and to promote equitable access to the outdoors for all people.
Surfrider showed up in force: nine staff members and more than a dozen club and chapter volunteers joined the effort, making us not only a primary organizer, but one of the most visible organizations across both days of the event. Ocean Day's legislative priorities included many bills Surfrider has prioritized — learn more at california.surfrider.org/2026-legislation.
Surfrider staff, from left: Northern California Regional Manager Sara Heintzelman, Southern California Regional Manager Michaela Coates, San Francisco Chapter Manager Nina Atkind, San Diego Chapter Manager Joana Guerra, California Policy Senior Coordinator Mitch Silverstein, Clean Border Water Now Manager Sarah Davidson, Los Angeles Chapter Manager Eugenia Ermacora, and Plastic Pollution Initiative Senior Manager Miho Ligare.
The two-day advocacy extravaganza opened Monday afternoon with votes in the state Senate and Assembly commemorating the 50th anniversary of the California Coastal Act, then continued at the California Natural Resources Agency Auditorium with a documentary on the grassroots campaign that created the California Coastal Commission — a fitting origin story for an event both celebrating the anniversary and fighting to secure the next 50 years of protection. A workshop on organizing plastic pellet counts and a film from the Sacred Places Institute for Indigenous Peoples rounded out the afternoon before advocates joined our partners at Azul to celebrate their 15th anniversary.
California Coastal Commission Executive Director Kate Huckelbridge
The main event kicked off Tuesday with attendees gathering at Westminster Presbyterian Church for materials, guidance, and an inspiring welcome from Coastal Commission Executive Director Kate Huckelbridge. Thirty-three teams of advocates then fanned out across the Capitol for a full day of lobby meetings. A mid-morning press event on the West Capitol Lawn set the tone, with ocean leaders reflecting on California's five decades of coastal leadership and the challenges ahead.
Northern California Regional Manager Sara Heintzelman, second from right, and a team of Ocean Day advocates met with staff at Governor Gavin Newsom's office.
The centerpiece of the day was the lunchtime Beach Party in Capitol Park. Our own Joana Guerra (Surfrider San Diego Chapter) served as emcee, drawing rave reviews for her trademark humor and upbeat energy.
California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot kicked off the the Ocean Day lunch celebration, above, and Surfrider Foundation board member Toni Cordero of the Chumash Nation brought additional depth and context to the movement.
The speaker lineup featured heavy-hitters: Secretary Wade Crowfoot of the California Natural Resources Agency, Assemblymember Laurie Davies, Coastal Commission Vice Chair Caryl Hart, plus Surfrider Foundation board member Toni Cordero, representing the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation, who brought both personal authority and historical depth to the day.
The Surf Justice Collective hosted an art activity for attendees looking to bring together their advocacy and creativity into a collective vision for the future.
The afternoon panel series covered three of the most pressing issues facing California's coast:
Marine Protected Areas — The first panel made the case for MPAs as a win for people and ecosystems alike, featuring Anupa Asokan of Fish On, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš of Azul, and Tina Calderon of Sacred Places' Ocean Protectors Program.
The Tijuana River Crisis — Opened by Senator Catherine Blakespear and moderated by community advocate Ramon Chairez, the second panel brought local voices and hard data to what has become one of the worst ongoing public health and environmental justice emergencies in the United States. Surfrider's own Aurora Czajkowski, also a researcher with UCSD's Airborne Institute, was among the featured speakers, sharing current findings on the pollution flowing through the watershed.
Coastal Access and Equity — The third panel of the day, opened by Senator Lena Gonzalez and moderated by Jessica Knox of Salted Roots, took a longer view: what does it mean to fund not just access, but belonging along California's coast? Speakers from Native Like Water, Queer Surf, Black Surf Santa Cruz, and City Surf Project offered an intergenerational look at what sustained investment in coastal communities can look like.
The day closed at the Stanford Mansion with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Ocean Champion Award Ceremony — a well-earned celebration for a community that had spent the better part of two days making the case for California's coast, and a well-deserved honoring of two leaders who have dedicated their careers to it.
Kate Huckelbridge has worked at the Coastal Commission since 2009 across roles spanning energy and ocean resources, wetland restoration, and tribal liaison work, and has been instrumental in the Commission's adoption of its Nature-Based Adaptation Strategies Guidance this past March.
Samantha Murray, in black, with students from Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Samantha Murray — Executive Director of the Marine Biodiversity and Conservation program at Scripps Institution of Oceanography and a California Fish and Game Commissioner appointed by Governor Newsom in 2019 — was equally deserving of recognition. Murray played a key role in the design and implementation of California's network of marine protected areas, which now cover 16 percent of state waters. 
The work doesn't stop when the lobby meetings end. Surfrider will continue to advocate on these bills in the Capitol, at the beach, and everywhere in between — because California's coast belongs to everyone, and we intend to keep it that way.
California Policy Associate Director Jennifer Savage and Assembly Member Al Muratsuchi (rocking Surfrider's Love Your Beach hat!)