Travel
Surfrider’s efforts, I designed a
waterfall-bamboo gutter system,
rain barrel, and outdoor shower
at my San Diego home to recycle
greywater for garden use.
Started over a decade ago, 1%
For the Planet is a global movement
of companies who dedicate 1% of
their sales to environmental and
sustainability charities across the
globe, including the Love Blue
initiative. To date, 1% For the Planet
has more than 1,200 members in
48 countries that have donated
over $100 million dollars to over
3,300 non-profits.
Thus, in addition to Penju
Publishing’s 1% For the Planet
commitment, I will donate $1 to
Surfrider for every sale of my
upcoming novel, The Poet’s Secret.
My book is inspired by my blue
travels and is a love song to our
seas and the creatures that call
them home, including yours truly.
I hope to do more than simply enjoy
the wonders of a blue life – I want
to share and preserve them. I’ll see
you out there in the blue.
Kenneth Zak’s debut novel, The
Poet’s Secret, is available October
2015 from Penju Publishing. Until
then, the author and poet will be
in the waters off of Southern
California, France, Kauai, and
the Maldives.
into the canal’s warm water.
Thousands of lightning bursts
flashed around my every stroke,
creating a spectacularly illuminated
aquatic aura around my body.
I was swimming amidst seasonal
luminescent plankton. Flipping on my
back I gazed up at the stars, laughed
out loud, and swam on in bliss.
The euphoria of these blue
adventures got me thinking. I had
traveled and feasted in the waters
of our world. Beyond the Gulf of
Thailand, I had surfed in the Indian
Ocean, swam in the Mediterranean,
and dived in the blue Aegean of the
Greek Islands. I wanted to preserve
such experiences, so in addition to
working with local charities when I
traveled, years ago I also joined the
Surfrider Foundation, and last
year affiliated my publishing
company, Penju Publishing, with
1% For the Planet.
Surfrider is a non-profit organization
started 30 years ago by a group of
California surfers trying to preserve
their favorite surf spot. It has since
grown to over 250,000 members who
work to promote beach access, clean
water, coastal preservation, and
ocean protection. In California,
Surfrider has helped stop the
building of a toll road that would
have destroyed our SoCal coastline,
combatted plastic pollution, and
worked toward implementing OFGs
(Ocean Free Gardens), which is
particularly important given the
California drought. Motivated by
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