1. Spread Good Vibes! Simply be nice to each other!
Life can be testing, but being negative only makes things harder for you and those around you. Try not to loose your cool. Keep kindness and good vibes flowing through you and to those you encounter throughout the day. Positivity is contagious, healing, and unifying. A peaceful world starts in our own hearts, so our job as individuals is to check ourselves when negative emotions arise and take another direction before they become overwhelming and cause harm to ourselves and others. In a better world, we must treat each other and ourselves with kindness, compassion, and integrity!
2. Your dollars are your Voice: Buy Organic, Local, Non-toxic, and Mindfully.
Let your purchases speak to your values. We can make a positive impact everyday by supporting brands and people who care about people and the environment as much as we do. By doing so, we tip the demand toward sustainable, fair trade, socially-responsible goods. Buying local offsets carbon. Supporting organic farmers helps reduce degradation and pollution of our soils, waterways, and oceans not to mention our bodies. Boycotting brands containing GMO ingredients tells Monsanto we disapprove of Big Ag, Round-up ready varieties, and their monopolizing of our seed banks! Opting for recycled, sustainably-sourced wood and paper products can help preserve biodiversity and the Earth’s remaining forests. Refusing to buy chemical-based sunscreen, shampoos & body wash, laundry & dish soaps, toothpaste & cleaning products means fewer toxic chemicals end up in our bodies and waterways. Do a little research, beware of fakes & greenwashing, read ingredients and labels, and look for minimal and recycleable packaging! Check out Patagonia, Mizu, Zeal Optics, Avasol Suncare, Enjoy Handplanes, to learn more about these highly mindful, authentic brands who love our Earth!!
3. REFUSE single use plastics, reduce, reuse, recycle!
Our oceans are becoming plastic soup. I find plastic debris lining the beaches of tropical islands thousands away from any trash source. This plastic never biodegrades, only breaks down into tiny toxic pieces that pollute our ocean ecosystems and enter the food chain–killing wildlife ranging from plankton to seabirds to whales–and rendering our seafood toxic. It’s time we demand and implement non-toxic plastic replacements and stop using something ONE TIME that will last FOREVER (plastic bags, bottles, straws, etc). 50 billion plastic beverage bottles are produced each year. At least 40 billion of them end up in our oceans and landfills EVERY YEAR, not to mention a stream of other plastic bags and trash. Let’s stop our single-use plastic addiction and lead the way toward a world of biodegradable plastic alternatives. Get a reusable water bottle, bring your own reusable cutlery, install a water filter in your home, bring your own shopping bags, dine-in, refuse plastic straws, avoid brands using excess plastic packaging, and speak up with friends and merchants about this important issue! Check out Mizu’s stainless steel waterbottles and campaign to #protectwhereweplay!!
4. Eat less or no meat! Animal agriculture is killing our environment.
Why do they keep telling us to ‘turn off the lights’ and ‘carpool’ to help save the planet when eating less meat & dairy for a week could decrease your personal eco-impact more than carpooling for a whole year? Animal agriculture is a leading cause of the greenhouse gases responsible for climate change, soil degradation, water pollution due to animal waste runoff, ocean acidification, rainforest clearing, and extinction due to habitat loss and destruction. The energy and water that go into meat production are astonishing. It takes an average of 660 gallons of water to produce a single hamburger!? Despite that the meat and dairy industries have us thinking animal protein is necessary for our health, studies prove otherwise. We can get every essential nutrient and amino acid we need from plant foods. Excessive meat and dairy are proven to cause cancer, hormone imbalance, high blood pressure, obesity, and a host of other unpleasant effects. Plus, we’ve sadly overlooked the horrifying treatment of these sentient animals in America’s factory farms, as well as the depressing conditions of the farm workers. Fish and shrimp farms are generally extremely environmentally taxing, and have an adverse effect on wild local populations, plus their end-products lack nutrition. After switching to a plant-based diet in 2012, I can assure you that I feel SO good that the thought never enters my mind to go back!! If you’re not ready to give up meat entirely, try to choose wild, sustainably-caught, or humanely-raised meat, poultry, and seafood. Check out the documentaries “Cowpiracy“, “Earthlings“, “Forks Over Knives“, “The Game Changers“, “What the Health” to learn more.
5. Support alternative & free energy solutions
Clean energy is absolutely possible and available to us, and has been so for a long time. It’s just not in the interest of the very powerful people who prefer we stay dependent on buying their fossil fuels. They are destroying the planet just to get richer…it’s rather short-sighted and selfish, no? It’s time to demand a shift away from petrochemicals and support alternative energy whenever possible. In the US, Arcadia power offers residents a seamless way to support clean energy without having to change your utilities provider or put solar panels on your home, it only takes a few clicks to find out if your residence or rental is eligible, check it out! Wherever where we can, let’s go off-grid, use solar and wind-power, drive more fuel-efficient cars, demand better public transportation, walk, ride a bike, and support alternative energy systems and free energy solutions!
6. Dedicate yourself to personal growth & self-awareness!
A better you makes a better world, and I believe we cannot truly be fulfilled without growing and evolving into better versions of ourselves. It’s easy to point fingers and blame our problems on others, but this doesn’t help anyone. Going within takes courage, but the rewards are unlimited. Even small positive changes in our negative behavior patterns can improve our lives and relationships drastically, and inspire others around us to do the same. Don’t wait for someone else to change, change yourself. Find where you can be more open, kind, loving, positive, flexible, courteous, patient, forgiving, honest, humble, etc. We all have our issues, our struggles, our hardships. We can either use them as stepping-stones to our greatness, or allow them to make us bitter and victimized. Choosing the latter leads only to further darkness, so we must use our adversities as opportunities to grow, learn, and move closer to the Light!! Check out my Reading List for helpful book recommendations in this department!
7. Get Outside and connect with Mother Earth!
Whether you just stop & take a deep breath and look up at the sky, or smell a flower, go for a nature walk, surf, hike, swim, or the likes–doing something everyday to acknowledge our connection and dependence upon the Earth helps keep the important things in perspective. We often forget that we depend on a healthy Earth for every meal we eat, each drop of water we use, and every breath we take. A life acknowledging this connection to the Source of our existence cultivates gratitude, balance, respect, and a feeling of Oneness with Nature and the Universe. Get off the beaten path and go fall in love with this magnificent planet in your own beautiful way!
8. Plant a garden or create a permaculture yard. Let’s take back our food!
It’s amazing what we consider ‘food’ these days. Growing a veggie garden and planting edible plants in your yard is not only the best way to ensure that your food is chemical & GMO-free, and charged with love, but you also reap the benefits of re-connecting with your food and gaining respect for the growing process. You automatically reduce your carbon footprint, contribute to local biodiversity, save yourself some cash, and put the power to feed yourself highly nutritious food back in your own hands!! Veggie Garden Cheat Sheet, How to Build a Permaculture Vegetable Garden, Starting Your Permaculture Garden
9. Buy Less, Waste Less, Upcycle, and Get Creative with what you have.
Nature knows no ‘waste’—matter and energy are always reused and transformed. Our current economy is based on the impossible premise of infinite growth on a finite planet, encouraging us to blindly consume and throw away. We spend our time earning money to buy things that often don’t enhance our well-being or happiness. This one-directional ‘buy & toss’ system is not sustainable! We must reject this model by refusing to buy things we don’t really need, offering services rather than goods as gifts, finding ways to reuse and reinvent things that we would normally throw away, or giving them to someone who will. We must find a way to close the loop on our waste stream, and be as clever as nature at utilizing, recycling, and transforming our resources! Check out Patagonias’s Worn Wear program to repair old clothes and bags and wetsuits!
10. Do what you Love!!
We are all here for a unique and beautiful calling. Each of us contributes to the diversity and evolution of humanity when allowed to develop into our fully blossomed selves. Take a risk! Follow your dreams and live up to your potential, so that you may be happier and more inclined to want to give back to the world. Choose joy and passion over security. Abundance follows people who live in their true calling or joy-space. The alternative is a life of gray, haunted by internal whispers of what ‘could have been’. Money and comfort doesn’t really make us happy, only genuine self-love does. I believe ‘too comfortable’ can become caustic, and the only real failure is having never tried. We can’t wait for the system to change, we must leap with relentless positivity and energy toward living a life we dream of. Once you go for it, you’ll look back and see how your hardships were part of your path to fulfillment, and a deep Trust may be born in the Greatness and Perfection of it All. Compassion flourishes, competition melts away, and we come to see and feel the interconnectedness of all our stories and struggles. Understanding and feeling this Oneness, we realize that we cannot truly rise unless we rise together. Hence, we strive to lift up our brother and sister humans everyday!
48 Comments
mark
November 3, 2014liz,
wow! you are a most precious gift to Creation. your suggestions are clear, informed and powerful. if we each were to begin the process of healing ourselves and the planet with these wise offerings we could create a new world where love, joy, peace and compassion determined our reality. i believe it is possible to realize this dream if we work together as individuals and communities to bring it into being. THANK YOU for being You and contributing so mightily to our consciousness rEVOLution!!!
peace & love,
mark
Jamie Van Jones
November 3, 2014These are all fantastic ways we can live lighter on the planet and still have an absolutely amazing life.
Love the new site and all the amazing inspirations your sharing!
Ida
November 11, 2014Amazing!! You are really inspiring!
auntie
November 12, 2014Just the BEST!! Thanks for being YOU Lizzy
David
November 12, 2014Hi Liz,
Been following your journey since the beginning…you have become a great writer and philosopher.
Thank you for all of it.
David Frederick
PS, Buying items not in plastic is hard to do but if everyone refused to by single use plastic it could work. Some things I do is look for an alternatives in glass or cardboard which are much more earth friendly.
Auntie
November 21, 2014AMEN!!
Stephanie
November 21, 2014Liz! What an awesome makeover to your site :) I can’t wait to read more of your posts xo
Chuck Rondeau
December 30, 2014Just found your blog while on Facebook and love it!
Want to see future updates and wish you the best.
Uno1g
January 1, 2015Just found about your story and your sailing quest. First, Happy New Year…wishing you the best. I will drop in from time to time to read your blog and how your trip is going.
Suerte…
g
Sunil J
January 5, 2015What an inspiration you are Liz.
Liz Clark Sets Sail as National Geographic Adventurer of the Year | Dirtbag Darling
January 19, 2015[…] not just the surf that motivates Clark to set sail—she uses her blog, SwellVoyage.com, to educate people on environmental and spiritual issues she gets to experience first hand during […]
Antoine
February 20, 2015Hello Liz,
Do you have any video abot “what can we do ? ” It is an inspiring message.
Where are you located ? somewhere in the world, I can imagine..
We prepare a “Good vibes for the planet” event in Paris during december 2015 COP 21 conference about the climate.
We are interested to plan different active testimonies in our event (web links, wen conference, vidéos….)
Tell me what is possible. We have full of time. And first, we are looking for sponsors to realize the project, just a slight detail, but we go on our way..
Sincerely
Antoine + 336 16 79 81 96 – Paris
Captain Liz
February 27, 2015Hi Antoine, I don’t have any video, but i’m excited to hear about your good vibes/climate project!! sounds wonderful! let me know how i can help… all the best, Liz
Simon
February 22, 2015Inspirational!
Marion
February 27, 2015Hi Liz
That really summerize the happy sobrerness I try to live and share with people. Thanks for spreading your “green” vibes and wisdom.
Marion
Rob Baxter
February 28, 2015fantastic post, really touching and excellent points are made. if everyone could take something from this then it would be a much better world we live in
Stevie
March 5, 2015Hey Liz,
I just discovered your journey/site. I’m so impressed and inspired. THANK YOU! My husband and I moved into our Sprinter van over 5 years ago to travel the Pan-American highway, and 6 months into the journey, we decided to make it a permanent lifestyle. My husband has an online adventure sport retail business, and I’m writer, so we both are able to work on the road. A couple years later we had a baby in Peru and then put her in the van and continued our journey. After 4 years in Latin America, we’re now traveling in an RV (solar powered) in the States and Mexico for a couple years before traveling abroad again. We love living a lighter, nomadic lifestyle that fosters adventure and intimacy. In other words, you’re a girl after our own heart! You’re such a bad ass. Keep it up!
Captain Liz
April 22, 2015Awesome Stevie!!! Sending heaps of love and light, so grateful to know there’s others living lightly and inspired!! xoxox
Angel
March 17, 2015Hola Liz,
Buenos días. Mi segundo correo para decirte que me pone los pelos de punta, cada vez que pienso en ese océano de plástico. Las empresas productoras deberían tener la responsabilidad de recoger todos esos residuos, los gobiernos serían los que les obligaran a ello, cada una en la medida de lo posible, (tampoco se puede quebrar la empresa y echar a los trabajadores a la calle), pero indudablemente hacer una aportación importante, nada de tonterías. Esfuerzo.
Y nosotros podemos, aquí en tierra, porque somos la multitud que compramos los productos, podemos repito, sencillamente ir a comprar a aquel supermercado que no entrega bolsas de plástico, sino de papel, como antiguamente, a quien vende los líquidos no en envase de plástico, sino de cristal, como antiguamente. Las empresas pueden reestructurar sus actividades y amoldarse a estas necesidades.
Recuerdo cuando los envases de vidrio se recogían, porque cada uno de ellos tenía un valor monetario y no se rompía ni se tiraba ninguno, se recogían y se llevaban de nuevo a la empresa, lo limpiaban y rellenaban. Sistema perfecto. Nada de usar y tirar. Esto se puede hacer con todo.
Saludos. Paz y amor.
Captain Liz
April 22, 2015Estoy de acuerdo por completo, Angelo!! gracias por su nota. amor, la luz y la paz de nuevo a usted tambien!! :D liz
Richard
March 22, 2015Its inspiring to watch an evolving Being on their chosen path. May the Green Flash be with you.
lucia
March 24, 2015grazie per le cose che hai fatto e che fai. grazie per come sei. grazie per quello che scrivi. grazie per le foto che pubblichi. grazie per i libri che hai diviso con noi, grazie per la voglia di condividere con tutti noi la tua crescita e la tua conoscenza. avevo proprio bisogno di te!
buon vento
王洪亮
May 1, 2015Hola Liz,
我来自中国
I’m from China
看到你的事迹 深表敬佩
See your deeds deeply admire
无数次联想扬帆起航 探索世界
Countless Lenovo set sail to explore the world
希望与你同行
Hope with you
Mary Grace
May 1, 2015I find you to be inspirational. I hope to one day have the opportunity to travel the world in a similar way. Thanks for continuing to inspire.
Julian
May 1, 2015Liz! I just stumbled upon your amazing travels and saw you’re looking for a partner to travel with. I am very interested. We should open a dialogue and see if this is possible.
Sven
May 2, 2015hy Liz, I read on the internet that you are looking for a partner for your journey. I still can not sail, but love nature and traveling, will make the world better, and I need a break from my current life. if you want to know more about me, but let’s review.
Bj
May 2, 2015I would love to join You in Your journey, and learn from You…I am in awe of the strength of Your personality… I would love to not only meet You, but assist You as a companion on this amazing journey…my email is bjbone25@yahoo.com…please msg me via email or Facebook…
Alex
May 2, 2015Hi Liz, what you’re doing in my opinion is the right way for us all to go about life. I’d see us getting on like two peas in a pod given you’re lifestyle choice and views. I’d love to come join and even learn from you, if that wasn’t a possible option you’ve certainly inspired me with a new way to travel and live, so thank you. Hopefully I’ll get to meet you and you’re little feline friend in person, if not then best of luck with the trip!
bleachfree
May 7, 2015我对于世界一无所知，也不会说英语，但是我要与你一起成为海贼王……给我一个成为浪迹天涯的亡命之徒的chance。然后有一天，把我葬在那广阔的天地间吧！Captain Liz Clark
Erica Montgomery
July 12, 2015Hi!
I’m in! You need a travel buddy?!?
I found your list of ways to live better and I couldn’t agree more… I’ve bee living like this for a few years now and I’m never going back…
I am a self employees photographer who would love for nothing more than to travel with you for some time… I have some sailing experience, I’m not afraid to conquer my fears, I follow my gut, and it has been an awesome amazing experience so far… I’d love to follow the swell for a while…. I like you am small but strong. It would be my dream to come with you and document and experience this first hand. I want to document it all… The local foods, preparation on a boat or on a remote island. The waters, the people you encounter along the way… I could go on and on dreaming of your reality…
Please consider me as your mate! I’d love to go with the flow in that part of the world…
Have a great day! I look forward to chatting with you about this possibility!
With inspiration and gratutide..
Erica Montgomery
Ari
October 29, 2015Hello Liz,
I only recently found your blog, while searching for great surf blogs. Your words have been an awesome inspiration to me. Your story is incredible, thank you so much for sharing your voice with the rest of the world. It’s easy to think that there’s nowhere left to explore, no adventurers left, and nothing worth being passionate about in this “cyber age”. You have shot straight through those thoughts, proving that there is always more, so long as you follow after what you love. Thank you for inspiring me to know only follow my true passions, but to live in my best way, and to live for more than myself. To reach out for others, for Earth, and for those in need. We can help so simply.
Ari
Captain Liz
November 10, 2015Thank you so much for your note, Ari. Your words here are why i continue to do what i do. I wish you all the best in personal and earth explorations!!! One Great Love, Liz
Pete
November 16, 2015Hey,
Pretty cool stuff and yes, absolutely important stuff.
I’m a primary school teacher with a passion for marine conservation, so I smiled and thought wow :-) when I found your blog. Our students have just completed a really cool project called “Kids Teaching Kids” where by our students teach other kids about sustainability and conservation. We (well actually I chose but don’t tell them lol ) the problem with plastic litter in our oceans. We called the project “Plastic Oceans” and presented 4x 40-minute presentations and activities to 177 other kids. We engaged them in different activities to highlight and create awareness of the plastic litter problem in our oceans.
I’m also a huge believer in positive self-awareness in kids, and we have a pretty vibrant and fun classroom. Yes, we have a national curriculum to deliver but there is no reason why we cannot deliver it in an interesting and engaging way.
I like your messages and your drive, as it’s very rare to read about a person that not only talks the talk (The scourge of social media is lots of people talk but don’t take action) but more so I like that you walk the walk so to speak or in this case… you hoist the sails.
Well done and thank you, thank you for inspiring others and for your energy that is truly powerful. One’s personal inner energy is a vital part of what makes up who we are.
I’m about to sail out and take my message of marine conservation to the oceans as a learning experience for others. I’m only 2 years away from retiring early and going sailing, but as a teacher I’m keen to make my sailing lifestyle an educational learning experience for others(mainly kids as they are the adults of tomorrow), very much as what you are doing so well :-)
If we share a port one day, I’ll be sure to wave and say hi… Oh, I’ll be on a somewhat smaller sailboat but a sailboat nevertheless :-)
Cheers, Pete
Jake
December 1, 2015Mental page
Continue your greatness
Louis-Marie Rioux
February 6, 2016Hi HI Captain Liz
I just found out about your incredible journey , wow
I am about to buy and old sailboat , fix it up simply , without polluting , and then do like you , travel and help people all over this planet, any advice ?
the wind be with you , cheers
Deb
April 27, 2016A very thoughtful list. Thank you.
mal tolhurst
April 29, 2016Hi Liz just been reading about your adventures with your furry little friend, I travelled around in Australia for a number of years with a cat her name was “Romy” had her since she and its true what they say , Cats have staff , dogs have owners , I love sailing ,NZ, Sth Africa, Australia, stay safe and happy sailing
Graeme
May 5, 2016Hi, clearly you don’t but I’m going to ask anyway, need any crew???
Roland
June 19, 2016Hey Liz! My name is Roland. I am so inspired by your authenticity and tenacity to focus your energies on creating a healthy and vibrant life for yourself and those around you! Thank you for that! My wife and I are currently on a search along the West Coast with a purpose of finding and capturing stories of people who have chosen their passion and love for water over the comforts of financial stability and a “traditional” lifestyle. Our purpose is to inspire youth to get out and explore, take risks, and embrace the richness of life. I love your passion and lifestyle and thought what a great place to start our search! If you have any friends or people you know on the West Coast – we would love to meet them and share their stories! I hope to hear back from you!
Blessings,
– Roland
Katie Featherstone
December 12, 2016Thanks for caring Liz, I’m so sick of selfish travel blogs. You’re a real inspiration.
Randy and Rosalie
May 27, 2017You are an inspiration to us. Great reads and posts…
Hoping we anchor near you.
Love that cat!
Amit Kumar
July 30, 2018Wow. Plant a garden and Reduce, reuse, recycle & refuse is the most important step we can do to shape your Owld a better place. Thank you, for providing these valuable tips that can bring peace and greenery.
anna
November 27, 2020best ideas you have given here I think once or twice a month we should get out and clean the areas that have waste
jenny summers
November 27, 2020lovely post and useful information we are a team of 5 whenever we go to the beach we spend one hour to clean the place we visit
Captain Liz
February 23, 2021That’s fabulous!!
carol summers
November 27, 2020that is so right if we spend some quality time of ours once a while we can save our earth
Melissa Monteith
February 24, 2023I am listening to SWELL now on Audibles. Love everything you are doing. Keep doing it! So tired of listening to people who profess to love nature but their day to day activities prove otherwise.
Gudrun
October 30, 2024Dear Liz,
Today I finished reading your book „Die Wellenreiterin“ in German and I feel I have to write you. Thank you so much for your open words about you and your life. I am just a woman from Germany, never sailed, never surfed, but love to travel while reading. What I love while reading your book is your high appreciation for our wonderful Planet including nature, animals and humans. We all belong together and connected with the „Great Spirit“ as you mentioned in your book on page 363. I am glad to let you know that this „Great Spirit“ will soon restore paradise on our wonderful planet and to bring to ruin those ruining the earth. More information on jw.org.
Wish you all the best with inspiration, appreciation and blessings,
Gudrun