We believe that a love of surfing and its culture is driven by the most fundamental aspects of what it means to be human; a desire to be connected to nature, to feel at home in a community, and to find solace and comfort in the simple things in life.
The message of being in this together is one that runs throughout the veins of every aspect of our festival and is something that is thoughtfully considered at every opportunity. We believe it is important to preserve a little pocket of heaven where realness and authenticity are valued in the surfing community, and where souls can collaborate and communicate honestly. Our event is all about inclusion, and we hope to inspire people to walk in the same direction, to support the same causes and to come together as one. We want to share with and educate our community about surfing, and how it inspires lifestyles, art, music, many other creative ventures, and as well how it promotes a heightened consciousness towards the environment and an overall state of wellness.
Together speaks of the brands we have aligned ourselves with, who share the same views, and value the things that we believe are important. By having a deep relationship with these brands we believe we can build a better future in this community, one that promotes creativity, awareness, healthy lifestyles and embodies the traditional values that surfing culture was built on. Building a better future also includes acting consciously towards our planet, supporting uniqueness and difference and working to keep this surf culture alive and active. We are so stoked that our headlining festival partners Patagonia, Stone & Wood, and Surf Stitch are so in-tune with what we stand for as a festival and we really do believe this is going to shine through in 2017’s event.
Being in this together also speaks of the story behind the festival, of how we have had to fight an internal battle to keep the essence of it alive, and how we have overcome the difficulties to come out the other side successfully united as one. When we observe our fellow team members around us now we see nothing but pure talent and a dedication that is emanating into every aspect of work to create the best festival yet. There is a quote by Christopher McCandless which reads, “Happiness is only real when shared”, and in this instance, we believe that is true. We are so proud to have found a group of people which truly embody the values we find important, and we recognise that together we are stronger and can make a real difference.
There is no better place than Byron Bay to see how much diversity and spirit there is amongst our human race and here different aspects of culture, nationalities and people from all walks of life will come together to celebrate all things surf culture. We are so lucky to call this idyllic beach town the home of the Byron Bay Surf Festival and could not imagine a more beautiful place to join with the some of world’s most creative, influential and talented people in this community.
The photos used from our official ‘In This Together’ show a community of people who are involved in amazing initiatives and share the values of the festival. This collaboration and celebration epitomises everything that our festival is based on, and we are so happy to have these guys come together to celebrate with us.